Damaged
by Zane's Girl- Jo
Summary: Glinda was not happy about moving to Nest Hardings. So one night, while wandering the cemetery, she stumbles upon a girl, & makes a new friend: mysterious Elphaba. There's just one teeny, tiny little problem. Her new friend is dead. Better Summary inside.
1. Chapter 1

**Damaged**

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena **

**Summary: Glinda wasn't happy about moving to the city of Nest Hardings. The other students at her new school snub her, she lives in a huge old, creepy mansion in the heart of the city, and she feels more out of place in Nest Hardings than she ever did in Gillikin. So one moonlit evening, while wandering the cemetery behind her house, Glinda stumbles upon a girl, and ends up making a friend: sweet, independent, mysterious Elphaba. While Glinda is thrilled to finally have a friend in this new city, there's one teeny, tiny little catch. Her new friend is dead. Elphaba's a ghost, and apparently one with vengeance on her mind. Glinda soon finds herself drawn into the city's lies, tangled within the heart of buried family secrets. Will Glinda be able to untangle the web of lies and discover Elphaba's dark family secret, or is everything too damaged to repair?**

_Prologue_

Nest Hardings, Province of Munchkinland, 1906

It's hot, muggy, the only way a summer in Nest Hardings can be.

It's the summer of the Western flu- Influenza, brought from the west, the Vinkun lands to the proper towns and cities of Munchkinland. By day, workers in the mills breath it in the air, injesting it into their lungs, and return home to their tenants, where they spread it like wildfire. By night, the rats carry it in the streets, passing the disease to cats out hunting, who later take the disease home to their owners. In a matter of weeks, thousands will be housebound, too sick to work, and by the first month, thousands upon thousands will be dead.

The church bells toll out the number of deceased, as the grave diggers spear their shovels into the ground, digging out graves big enough to hold full-sized coffins. Eventually, the cemeteries begin to overflow, and the city is forced to burn the countless dead. Wrapped in sheets, they're piled together before being lit aflame. The smell of smoke eventually morphs into the ever present stench of rotting bodies and death.

Those lucky few that are able to escape before the epidemic arrives, escape with their lives. Thousands, do not. While the wealthy hide away in their summer homes in Gillikin, the City, and the Glikkus, those left in Munchkinland suffer a fate only dictators would dare dream up. In the city of Nest Hardings, the mansions sit empty, abandoned, waiting for the returns of their owners; of the wealthy who built their lifestyles on the backs of the tenant workers.

Schools are closed, as children take sick; hospitals overflow with patients; and factories, despite the heat and the death all around, continue to stay open, even though most workers will never return to man their machines. Police become temporary morticians, helping cart the dead to the undertakers', dropping the bodies at the doorstep before returning hours later with more.

In the cemeteries of Nest Hardings, whole families are buried together, one on top of the other. Grave robbers haunt the stones, in search of recently buried wealthy, but they're out of luck. Several come upon fresh graves, unburied bodies, rotting corpses left in the open, due to very little room within the gravesites. Rats come to feast upon the flesh of the dead, spreading the disease even quicker. Eventually, the rats too, become victims of the Western flu.

In one cemetery, grave diggers wander among the stones, passing the names of long dead ancestors. They make their way past stillborn infants and insane grandmothers, past suicidal sons and murdered daughters, to a crypt, a vault holding the dead of the reigning family. The names of the dead, carved into the stone, paint a chilling family portrait. The workers break into the stone, and place two bodies, victims of Influenza, then seal the tomb, returning the marble plate to its previous position.

Four years pass.

In those four years, the city is still in the grips of the Western flu. Again, the men return to the family tomb, four bodies carried between them. They once again break the seal, remove the plate, and place the four bodies within the tomb, alongside their family. Once the tomb is sealed, the names are added. Well, all but one.

The last name is left off the family roll call; only the works know who it is.

And while they can't tell, they will never forget.


	2. Chapter 2

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena **

**Thanks to Hedwig466 for reviewing 1.**

The first glimpse Glinda Upland got of Nest Hardings, Munchkinland, was out her window as the plane pulled into NH Airport. And it wasn't even a good glimpse. The forty days and forty nights rainfall wasn't helping matters. So far, all she was able to see, were the tops of a few buildings. As she follwed her parents and her younger brother from the terminal, out of the airport, and into a cab, her view of the city darkened. The streets were crowded with cars, pedestrians hurried along under umbrellas or took shelter under awnings to wait out the rain. Sitting in the back of the cab, her brother between her and her mother, she watched the buildings race by as they drove to their new home. All too soon, her eyes landed on a quiet street, and she got out, grabbing her bags as her father paid the cab.

"Well here we are."

Glinda's mood darkened as she set eyes on the huge, sprawling mansion in front of her.

_This_ was it?

The house was crumbling, plaster falling from the ceilings, shingles gone from the roof. The grass had died, overgrown and yellow, like the beard of her Literature teacher back in Gillikin. The windows stared back at her, empty, dead, as though they'd seen too much death, and finally decided to die as well. The front, with its wraparound veranda, had once been beautiful, but now sat worn and withered, the wood warped. Windows were broken, and the chimneys were missing bricks. Ivy claimed the left half of the house, giving the affect of a green colored bruise.

"Home sweet home."

Glinda raised her eyebrows at her father.

_This_ was home?

She jumped when he clapped a hand on her back.

"Let's go explore our new home."

They entered a house filled with dust, cobwebs and the smell of rotting wood. The entryway led to a beautiful spiral staircase, which led to the second floor, where the bedrooms were. The parlor was off to the right, and the kitchen and dining room to the left. Slowly, she set her bags down and looked around.

"Glinda," She turned at her father's voice. "Why don't you go scope out the second floor?"

"I want to come!"

"Take your brother with you, Glin." Her mother said, going into the parlor.

"Okay." She plastered a smile on her face, and grabbed her bags, going up the stairs as, Tersan followed.

"I'll race you!" He cried, rushing past her.

"You do that." Glinda replied, following. The stairs creaked beneath her feet, groaning due to her added weight. Once she made it to the second floor landing, she followed her brother down a long hallway, passing by other rooms, stopping when Tersan poked his head out of one.

"Glinda! I want this one!" She poked her head in quickly, surveying the room before moving on.

"Have at it, Ters." She muttered, continuing down the hall. Eventually, her sore feet screamed at her to stop, and she set her bags down, hands on her knees to catch her breath. When she straightened, she saw the slightly open door staring back at her. Glancing over her shoulder, and finding no one, she went to the door and pushed it open before stepping inside.

The room was huge, with a bay window that overlooked the street, and a an aclove for reading. Cobwebs covered the corners of the ceiling, and dust coated every available surface. She moved towards the window, only to find that the window was covered in a thick coat of ivy, and the glass was broken, huge, spirderweb cracks in it. It was old, musty, and reminded Glinda of an attic.

"So, you like your new room?" She turned to see her parents in the doorway. Her mouth dropped.

"This... this isn't..." Eventually, she gave up, and shrugged. "It's... kind of... dusty..."

"Nothing a little elbow grease won't cure." Her father replied, placing her bags in the room. She crossed her arms over her chest, as her father went off to explore the rest of the house.

"I don't like it."

"Oh honey." She looked up as her mother joined her.

"Can't we move back home?"

"I wish we could, but this offer was too good to pass up. You know that. Besides, it's a nice house. And it'll be even nicer once we fix it up. You'll see." Mrs. Upland said, taking her daughter's shoulders. Glinda looked around quickly.

"I doubt it."

"Don't worry. Once we fix it up, you'll like it. I know you will." She kissed her daughter's forehead. "Okay?"

"Okay." She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as her mother went to the door.

"Oh, don't forget, school starts Monday."

"I know." And her mother was gone, leaving her alone in the room. Feeling uneasy, she left the room, and hurried downstairs. "I'm going outside!" No one responded, so she picked her way through the house, finally coming out the back door.

The backyard sprawled for miles, dead and wilted everywhere she looked. As she hurried down the back steps of the veranda, and made her way through the grasses, she found smaller houses farther back on the property, a carriage house, and a garden. She wandered among the weeds and trees, examining the property. However, she stopped when she came upon a huge, sprawling, black iron fence and gate.

Inside the gate, were stones, but the grasses that obscured her view made it hard to tell what kind...

"What are you looking at?"

She cried out and jumped, turning around to see her little brother behind her.

"Tersan! What are you doing here?"

"That's what I want to know." He replied, crossing his arms over his chest.

"N... nothing." She said, glancing back through the bars.

"Come on, we need to finish unpacking." Silent, she followed her brother back to the house.

But not before looking back at the iron bars.


	3. Chapter 3

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena **

"All right, what do you want for dinner?"

Glinda looked up from her spot on the sofa. They'd moved all of the furniture and boxes into the house, and now just needed to unpack everything. She shrugged.

"Pizza!" Tersan cried from the floor where he'd flopped an hour earlier. Her parents looked at each other before looking at her.

"Pizza okay?" Mr. Upland asked. Glinda shrugged.

"Fine."

"Well, pizza it is." Tersan let out a cheer of excitement, and scrambled to his feet, as Glinda reluctantly climbed to hers, and followed her parents outside. They piled into the rental car, and after several minutes of searching downtown, they found a nice little pizza parlor and sat down to eat.

"I say we start working on the house tomorrow. Fix it up room by room." Mr. Upland said.

"Why?"

"Because we're going to be living there, Glinda."

"I don't want to." She replied, taking a sip of her soda.

"I like the new house." Tersan added, through a mouthful of cheese.

"Don't talk with your mouthful, Tersan." Mrs. Upland reprimanded gently.

"Well I don't." Glinda replied, as her father sighed.

"I know you want to go back to Gillikin, Glin, but we can't. Besides, I took the position, I can't give it up now. You'll learn to like the new house, Glin. It'll just take time."

She didn't say anything, just took a bite of her pizza. When they returned to the house, they unpacked a bit more, before retiring to bed.

As Glinda laid under the covers of her bed, staring up at the ceiling, she imagined herself back in Pertha Hills. Hanging out with her friends, lounging in her room. Spending afternoons with Fenvu in the park or at the mall with her friends. Life had been perfect...

... And then Dad took that new position, uprooted them from their comfortable lifestyle, and flew them out here. Now, instead of being in her room with the Emerald City artwork, she was in a new room, a strange room, with her artwork packed away. And while Dad said that she'd get used to the house, truth was, she'd never get used to it. She hated it. From the moment she set eyes upon it, she hated it, to her very core.

From the veranda, with its warped wood, to the broken windows and creaking staircase. She hated the ivy crawling over her window, and the cobwebs in the corners of her room; the kitchen with its scratched cabinets, and the broken marble fireplace in the parlor. She hated the warped wood floor of the dining room, and the broken mirror in her own private bathroom. She hated the tub with its discolored claw feet- at one time, they may have looked like golden bird talons or tiger paws, but now were so rusted it was hard to tell- so much that she had a strong urge to take a chainsaw to it.

She hated the wallpaper, peeling and yellowed on her walls, and the ceiling medallion with the chandelier hanging over the foot of her bed. She hated the ornate doorknobs and the bay window with the cracks. She hated the aclove, and the built-in shelves, the mothballs and dust. She hated the carriage house and the garden, the little houses farther back on the property, and the iron fence with the stones behind it. She hated all of it.

After several minutes of staring at the ceiling, she got out of bed and went to the window. Through the ivy, she could just make out the street. Sighing, she turned from the window, and began to wander the room, stumbling into the boxes. After stubbing her toe, she sat down on the floor and opened the nearest box, taking out a pad of paper with a list of the items in it. Her books. Turning on the desktop light she'd unpacked earlier, she began to mark books off the list one by one, as she removed them from the box.

_The Reluctant Heiress. _Check. _A Company of Swans. _Check. _A Song for Summer. _Check._ The Morning Gift. _Check._ A Countess Below Stairs._ Check.

Prophecy of Sisters Series Generation Dead Series Wicked Lovely Series

_Prophecy of Sisters. _Check. _Generation Dead._ Check. _Wicked Lovely._ Check.

_Guardian of the Gate. _Check. _Kiss of Life._ Check. _Ink Exchange. _Check.

_Passing Strange._ Check. _Fragile Eternity_. Check.

_Uprising. _Check_. Radiant Shadows_. Check.

_The Tsarina's Daughter. _Check. _The Virgin Suicides_. Check.

Once she was done with the first box and list, she moved onto the second one, and the third, until all her books were stacked on the floor. Then, she started to stack her books on the built-in shelves. Once done with that, she stacked the empty boxes in a corner, and returned to work on the rest. Eventually, she fell asleep on the floor, curled up on one of the boxes.

The next morning, she awoke to her brother calling her down to breakfast. Stretching, she worked to get the crick out of her neck, before standing and going downstairs. She found her family in the living room, a box of doughnuts on the coffee table, surrounded by cups of coffee.

"Morning, honey, how did you sleep?" Mrs. Upland asked, sipping her coffee. Glinda shrugged.

"I didn't. I couldn't sleep. So I got up and unpacked."

"I thought I noticed a light on in your room." Mr. Upland said. She nodded.

"Yeah. I couldn't sleep, so I worked instead."

"Well, have something to eat, and then get dressed, because we need to get to work."

She nodded at her father, before taking a seat on the sofa.


	4. Chapter 4

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena **

**A/N: I went back and changed Glinda's age to ten, because I'm not too happy with her age, and it just seems more... believable if you will, that a ten-year-old would make friends with a ghost instead of a teenager making friends with a ghost.**

**Question: VENGANCE?**

**Answer: yes, the reason behind it will be revealed in the story later on**

**Question: Dead people in the back yard?**

**Answer: um... yeah**

**Thanks to lizziemagic for reviewing 1, 2 and 3 and to Issa(dot)wicked17 for reviewing 3.**

They worked all of Sunday, unpacking and unloading and working on the house. When nightfall rolled around, Glinda pulled out something to wear to the first day of school, and climbed into bed.

The next morning, she bolted upright in bed, shaking. Checking the alarm clock, she realized it was only six-fifteen; school didn't start until eight. Unable to go to sleep, she climbed out of bed and slipped into her bathroom, and splashed water on her face, before trying to figure out how to take a shower. Turns out, she couldn't take a shower, because there was no shower. Seeing as the house was old, it didn't have showers, only clawfoot tubs. Accepting defeat, she went back to her room and decided to get dressed, since she couldn't sleep and couldn't take a shower.

Begrudingly, she removed her pajamas, changed into underwear and a bra, and shimmied into her jeans and the Speak Your Mind t-shirt she'd laid out the night before. She slipped into the converse she'd worn the day before, and brushed her hair, holding the blonde locks back with a headband. Then, she pulled her hoodie on, and did her makeup, before looking for her backpack and books.

Around seven, the rest of her family awoke and began to get ready. When Mr. Upland passed by her room, he stopped, poking his head in.

"Glin- oh, you're up." She looked up from her place on the edge of the bed.

"I couldn't sleep. I tried to take a shower... and then I realized that there isn't a shower here." He nodded.

"Well, I'm going to go get breakfast, do you want anything?" She shook her head. "Okay, I'll see you down there."

Around seven-ten, she went downstairs, to find her mother in the parlor.

"Where's-"

"School. Your father should be back soon, to take you."

When hw dropped her off, he said,

"Glinda," She didn't move, just sat in the passenger seat with her arms crossed. "Please try to like it here."

"Why should I?" She snapped. "_You_ were the one that moved us here. Not me." And with that, she got out of the car, slamming the door before hurrying into the building. Once she was inside, she wandered around before coming to the principal's office to get her schedule.

"Ah, Miss Upland. It's nice to meet you." She nodded to the principal, and only half tuned in when she started speaking. "Now, this is your schedule, your first class is with Mr. Dillamond, that's History on the second floor. This is a floor plan of all three floors, and your locker is on the third floor, with the rest of the fourth graders- Locker Two-Twenty." She took the papers, and smiled at the principal before standing. "Since this is your first day, your tardiness is excused, but after this, you will be punished if you're late. Have a nice day." Glinda thanked her silently, before leaving the office. Silent, she wandered down the hall, glancing at the map every so often. Eventually, she made it to her first class and slipped inside as every head turned towards the door.

"Yes? Ah, you must be Miss Upland." She nodded to the older man. He adjusted his glasses, and motioned for her to have a seat. Silent, she moved to the back, before slipping into an avaliable seat. She glanced quickly around the room, before lowering her head. Eventually, everyone returned to the lecture. When class let out, she gathered her stuff and searched for her next class.

When school let out at two-thirty, she wandered down the street, passing shops and buildings, other students and adults.

"Watch it!" She stopped, and turned, to see a girl holding a cup of coffee, with said coffee all over her top. "You stupid bitch!"

"Sorry." And then she turned and continued home. When she made it back home, she found Tersan unpacking the china in the dining room.

"Hi Glinda."

"Hi Tersan."

"Wanna help?" She wrinkled her nose.

"No thanks. I have homework."

He looked up at her. "You already have homework? My teachers didn't give me homework because it's my first day."

"Well that's because you're in first grade, and I'm in fourth. The rules are different." She took a seat in one of the chairs and set her book bag on the table.

"Want one?" She looked up, to see Tersan holding out a cookie. After a moment, she took it, taking a bite.

"Thanks."

"Mhmm." They sat in silence before Tersan said, "We have a graveyard in the backyard."

"What?"

He met her eyes. "We have a graveyard in the backyard."

"What do you mean a graveyard?"

"I mean a graveyard. That big fence in the backyard? There's a graveyard behind it. That's what those stones are." Glinda raised her eyebrows.

"Really?"

He nodded. "Yeah. It's a big cemetery with lots of stones and figurines."

"How do you know?"

"Because I scaled the fence and wandered through it this afternoon when I got home." She sat watching her younger brother unpack, before grabbing her bag and climbing to her feet. "Where are you going?"

"Upstairs. I have homework to finish."

Once she was in her room, she got to work on her homework, but her thoughts kept wandering back to what Tersan had said.

_Scale the fence._


	5. Chapter 5

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

**A/N: Sorry this is so late, I had it written and edited, and thought I'd uploaded it, but when I checked, I realized that I hadn't uploaded it. So my bad. It's up now, sorry about that.**

**Thanks to anglekitty, lizziemagic and Issa(dot)wicked17 for reviewing 4.**

That night, after dinner and when everyone else went to bed, Glinda snuck out of her room, and slowly, made her way down the hall. Once she reached the landing, she gripped the banister and took it one step of a time, making sure the stairs squeaked as little as possible. With each step, she stopped and listened, making sure her parents hadn't heard. Checking behind her, once she reached the bottom of the stairs, she hurried through the house, the groans and creakings of the old mansion igniting every nerve.

Eventually, she rushed through the backdoor and hurried through the backyard. As her feet hit the soft grass, she checked behind her multiple times to make sure her parents hadn't woken up, and when she was certain she was alone, she hurried to the gate. Slowly, she grasped the bars and stared through the spaces, looking into the night. Once her eyesight was able to adjust, she saw the stones begin to materialize, like optical illusions in a book.

First one stone, and then another and another.

Eventually, all the stones appeared, and taking a deep breath, she pulled away and started to look for a way in. The gate was locked, and the bars were too close together for her to slip through. And then Tersan's words came back to her.

_I scaled the fence._

So that's what she'd do. Scale the fence. Now, it was just finding a good place to scale.

She looked the length of the fence over quickly, before deciding on a part of the fence that wasn't exceedingly high and wasn't exceedingly short. After several attempts to get a good grip, she finally managed to get a tight hold, and hoist a leg over. When she dropped softly to the earth on the other side of the bars, she felt excitement at the fact that she had managed to get over the fence and not get hurt.

Excited, she turned towards the stones, and suddenly realized what they were.

Graves.

They were gravestones.

She was in a cemetery.

And an old cemetery, from the looks of it, judging by the crumbling granite that met her at the front. But she realized, as she began to pick her way through the stones, that the newest stones were at the back.

Children's stones with carved lambs, stones with wilted flowers and faded flags told the names of those that slept beneath her feet. All stones seemed to bear the same name:

Throup.

Others bore a different spelling, but were most likely part of the same family:

Throap.

And still, Glinda saw another spelling, far more elaborate than the ones previous:

Throaupp.

Judging by the spellings, and the way they all seemed to spell out the same word, Glinda guessed that the people buried beneath were all members of a family, spaning several generations and centuries. She stopped at several stones, reading the names silently, as her fingers sought out the dates of their birth and death. She found several stones bearing the same name,, but with different dates and spellings, leading to the possibility that it was a family name, used for girls over several generations of the family.

A...? Or was it an E?

But as she continued to run her fingers over it, again and again, she realized it was both.

AE.

AE what?

Slowly, her fingers traced the other letters.

L-F-A-B-I-A

Aelfabia. Aelfabia?

"Aelfabia." She shook her head, the spelling was strange, and she stood, going to the next stone, and the next.

Finally, she reached a huge, marble, tomb- a burial vault, holding the entombed bodies of the dead. The beautiful white marble was surrounded by a small black iron fence, originally meant to keep intruders out. And so Glinda stayed.

She stared at the tomb, feeling a slight shadow of foreboding being near it, and as she took in ever detail, she noted the name carved above the tomb- another spelling, different than the others in the cemetery, but obviously part of the family that was buried beneath the rotting stones.

THROPP

The sound of something snapping close by caused her to turn, and her heart leaped into her throat at the thought of it being her parents. But when she checked, no one was there. When the sound echoed again, she decided to investigate, and wandered around the side of the tomb. No one.

Confused, she returned to the front of the tomb, and stopped, as yet another twig snapped. She turned quickly, and caught a flash of white.

"Hey! Hey! Who's there? Hey!"

She hurried after the intruder, rushing around the corner of the tomb. The person took her on a quick run around the tomb twice, and when she stopped to catch her breath, she heard the person behind her. Slowly, she straightened, and taking a deep breath, glanced over her shoulder, before finally turning. She let out a cry, stumbling back into the dirt and leaves, as the person moved towards her. Frightened, she crabwalked away from them, but stopped when she slipped and landed on her back. Her eyes widened as she locked eyes with the person.

"Who are you?"


	6. Chapter 6

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

**Thanks to Grumbello, Issa(dot)wicked17, lizziemagic and anglekitty for reviewing 5.**

"Who are you?" She asked, her voice growing stronger with every syllable. "What are you doing in my yard?"

"_Your yard_? What do you mean 'your yard'? This is _my_ yard."

Glinda shook her head.

"N... no it's not. I... it's my yard. It's behind my yard and my house."

"Look, I don't know how hard you hit your head, but you obviously hit hard enough to do damage, because this isn't your yard, and that isn't _your_ house. It's _my_ yard. And that's _my_ house." Glinda swallowed. "And I want you to get out."

Slowly, Glinda sat up, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. She bit her lip before shaking her head.

"No. I... I can't."

"Why not?"

"Because we're moving in."

_"Moving in? Into my house? Without my permission?"_

_"Permission? What permission? That house has been on the market for years! And my dad was stupid enough to buy it!"_

The girl- for it was obvious that the person Glinda was talking to was a girl- scoffed.

"My father would never put Colwen Grounds on _any market_. This house has been in my family for generations. My great-great-great-great-great-great grandfather built this house back in the sixteen hundreds, it's mine. It _rightfully belongs to me_. And if you think-"

"Colwen Grounds?" She stopped, and stared at Glinda, who, for her part, had only just registered the name. "Is that the name?"

"Yes. It is. My great-great-great-great-great grandmother named it when she was a child."

"Ah... I didn't know it had a name." Glinda whispered. The girl snorted.

"Everyone in Nest Hardings knows Colwen Grounds."

"I don't. But maybe that's because I'm not from here."

The girl stopped her pacing, and turned to stare at Glinda. "You're not?" Glinda shook her head. "Where are you from?"

"Gillikin. The Pertha Hills."

For a moment, the girl seemed to relax, closing her eyes and wrapping her arms around herself. A soft smile appeared on her already pretty face, and she lifted her arms, spinning around in excitement, her skirt swirlin in a bell around her legs. Not once did she look at Glinda.

"The Pertha Hills. I love the Pertha Hills. My family spends every summer there. We have a little house- Caprice-in-the-Pines- on the edge of Lake Chorge, just outside of Neverdale. It's the most beautiful little house. Well, it's more of a cottage than a house. And it's got a wishing well in the front yard, near the lake. And a garden in the back, a beautiful garden with wild roses blooming everywhere. We go swimming in the lake every summer. I love it there. I can't wait to go back." She turned to Glinda, opening her eyes and staring at the girl. "You've been to Neverdale, haven't you?" Glinda shook her head. "No, I don't suspect someone of your... class... would end up at going to Neverdale. It's not for the lower class, after all. Strictly for the upper." Slowly, Glinda climbed to her feet, brushing the dirt off her pajamas. "What are you wearing?"

"Ah..." She looked down at her pajama bottoms and top, before looking back at the girl. "My pajamas." The girl raised an eyebrow.

"You wear _men's pajamas? To bed_?" Glinda nodded. _"Have you no self respect?"_

"I..."

"A proper lady would never be caught dead in men's pajamas!"

"Look, I don't know who you are, but... I'm not a proper lady. I never have been."

"So you're one of the Bright Young Things?" The girl asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"The what?"

"The Bright Young Things. The women who go to saloons and dance to Ragtime and drink and smoke as though they were_ men_." A look of disgust crossed her pretty features, and she blanched.

"Ah... I'm not... one of those..." Glinda said, glancing at her feet.

"Well you must be. If you wear men's pajamas, then-"

"I don't smoke or drink. And I certainly don't listen to... Ragtime. I'm only ten." The girl started, surprised.

"Then you go to Madame Morrible's School for Girls?" Glinda shook her head.

"No. I go to Nest Hardings Intermediate, as of today."

"Nest. Hardings. Intermediate." The girl's right eye twitched and she blanched. "Surely you can't be serious." Glinda nodded. "Impossible. Madame Morrible's school has been around for years. I went there when I was ten."

"Well good for you." Then, Glinda turned to go back to the gate, when something crossed her mind. "How old are you?" She asked, turning back to the girl. The girl seemed taken aback.

"A true lady never reveals her age."

Glinda raised an eyebrow. Then, she went back to the girl, and circled her slowly. The girl didn't move, just watched her.

"I think you're sixteen. You look sixteen." Glinda stated, stopping in front of the girl, who raised an eyebrow. She snorted.

"You do, do you?" Glinda nodded. "Well I'm sorry, but you're wrong." She crossed her arms over her chest.

"You're seventeen?" Silence. "Eighteen?" All the girl did was glance to the side and sigh. "You're eighteen." After a moment, Glinda moved closer. "I've never met an eighteen-year-old before." She circled the girl. "You're pretty for eighteen."

"Thank you." When Glinda stopped in front of her, she held out her hand.

"I'm Glinda Upland." After glancing at her hand, the girl reached out to grasp her hand.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Elphaba. Elphaba Thropp. The Thropp Third Descending. Of the Nest Hardings Thropps."

And as she reached out to grasp Glinda's hand, the younger girl's finger went through her palm. Glinda's eyes widened. She glanced at the girl's hand, before looking up at her face. Her breathing came in gasps, and she backed away, stumbling over her own feet.

"You're... _you're dead!"_


	7. Chapter 7

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

**Thanks to anglekitty for reviewing 6. **

"_Must _you overreact? I hate it when people overreact."

That didn't stop Glinda from screaming. As her scream startled the birds nesting in the trees, Elphaba blanched, her lovely features rearranging into a look of disgust, as she wrinkled her nose and closed her eyes. She covered her ears, as Glinda's scream was cut short due to her falling and again landing on her back.

"Are you done?" Elphaba asked, sighing. Shaking, the girl backed up, eyes never leaving Elphaba's face.

"Don't come near me! Stay away from me!"

Elphaba rolled her eyes.

"Oh _must_ you be so melodramatic. I'm not going to hurt you. Why would I? You're of no importance to me. Go ahead and scream. Have a conniption fit for all I care, they'll just cart you off to Shizhurst, and you'll spend the rest of your days locked up the asylum. It's no skin off my nose. The sooner you get out of my house, the better."

Glinda took a deep breath, pushing herself up on her hands.

"You... you're not going to hurt me?"

Elphaba scoffed.

"Oz no, why would I? Like I said, you're of no importance to me. The last thing I want to do is hurt you. In fact, I don't want anything to do with you. I don't even know why I'm standing here talking to you. You're just a child. You belong in the playroom with your dolls. A girl of my age and sophistication belongs in the ballroom, dancing with as many eligible young men as I can. I shouldn't be talking with a child. I'm not a nanny." Then, she turned and walked off, leaving Glinda on the ground. After a moment, she climbed to her feet and hurried after Elphaba.

"Wait! Wait! Hey, wait up!"

_"What?" _She skidded to a stop as Elphaba turned to her, her long black hair flying over her shoulder, eyes ablaze with annoyance.

"Ah... I... I'm sorry. I... I didn't mean to annoy you." Elphaba looked her up and down quickly, before turning and continuing to pick her way through the stones. Sighing, Glinda followed. "Please!"

"What do you want?"

"I... I just want... a... a friend." Elphaba stopped and turned to her.

"A friend?" Glinda nodded.

"I don't have any friends at school, and... I... I'm lonely. I could really use a friend right now."

Elphaba eyed the younger girl, before facing her and taking a seat... on a tombstone. Glinda watched the older girl with unease. She was sitting on a tombstone. Should _she_? After a moment, Glinda looked around, and, spotting another stone close to Elphaba's, she perched uneasily on the stone. They sat in silence for several moments, before Glinda asked,

"When did you live here?" Elphaba raised an eyebrow.

"I've always lived here. I grew up here. This is _my house_. And if you don't like it, you can _get out_."

"Okay, I'm sorry. I just... I want to know more about you."

Elphaba tossed her head, her long raven locks tumbling down her back. Her small button nose wrinkled in boredom, and she sighed. "What do you want to know?" Glinda shrugged.

"Where were you born? Do you have any siblings? What's your job? Things like that."

_"My job?" _Elphaba raised her eyebrows. "_My job_ is to be a good wife. It's to take care of the house and my family."

"You don't have a real job?"

_"That is my job."_

"Oh. Sorry." After a moment, "Do you have any siblings?"

Elphaba sighed. "I have a younger sister and a younger brother. Shell and Nessarose. My father is the Govenor of Munchkinland."

"Oh... wait a minute. You were the Govenor's daughter?"

"What do you mean 'were'? I _am_." Glinda shook her head.

"No you aren't."

"Yes I am. Frexspar Thropp is the Govenor of Munchkinland. And when I marry, my husband will be the govenor." Glinda snorted.

"No he isn't. He's dead. You're _both dead_."

Elphaba scoffed. "Okay, what century are you living in? My father is the Govenor and I'm his daughter."

"Um... the twenty-first century. What century are you living in?"

Elphaba tossed her head, her long raven hair cascading down her back in waves. She eyed Glinda for several minutes, the violet irises taking everything about the younger girl in. She licked her lips, before wrinkling her nose in annoyance.

"It's ninteen hundred and ten. Why?"

Glinda choked.

"Nineteen ten? Are you _insane_?"

Elphaba wrinkled her nose again, her features rearranging in disgust.

"Oh cut the dramatics. Is that all there is to you, drama?"

"No, but you've got to be nuts. It's _not_ ninteen ten! It's _two thousand and ten_. You're a _hundred years behind_."

Elphaba glared at her, before getting off the stone.

"I'm not insane. The insane one is you. Now get out of my yard and get out of my house."

Then, she stormed past Glinda and went back to the tomb. Silent, Glinda hopped off her stone and followed.

"I can't!" After a moment, she asked, "When were you born?" Elphaba stopped, turning to her.

"Eighteen ninety-two."

"Oh. I was born in two-thousand."

After a while, Elphaba said, "So all you really want is a friend?" Glinda nodded. "All right, fine."

"So you'll be my friend?" Elphaba sighed and nodded.

"Yes. I'll be your friend."


	8. Chapter 8

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

**Question: Why is she soupset with Glinda (other than the fact that she is younger than her)?**

**Answer: it'll be revealed as the story goes on**

**Thanks to anglekitty for reviewing 7 and lizziemagic for reviewing 6 and 7.**

"You will?" Elphaba nodded reluctantly. "Thank you! Thank you!" She rushed to throw her arms around the older girl, and instead, ended up going through her, and landed on the ground. Elphaba shivered.

"Warn me next time you do something stupid like that." Glinda looked up as she moved out of the way and leaned against the fence around the tomb.

"Sorry." Elphaba sighed.

"It's all right." Glinda watched her, as she climbed to her feet.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong."

"What's wrong? You look sad."

"I just... I miss..."

"Who?" Elphaba met her eyes.

"No one. It's no one." She turned from Glinda, moving away from the fence, and wandering off a bit.

"It must be someone." Glinda said, following.

"It's no one."

"Your sister? Or your brother?" Elphaba shook her head, stopping to lean against an old tree. The slight breeze picked up the edges of her hair as it passed.

"It's not them."

"Your father?" Elphaba snorted and glanced over her shoulder at Glinda, before turning her attention back to the tree. Her fingers traced something carved into the wood, and she sighed.

"Not my father. I love my father, but no, I don't miss him. It's someone else."

"Your mother?" Another shake of the head. "Who is it?" Glinda asked, going to face her. Elphaba sighed, and met Glinda's eyes.

"Someone else." She said, moving away from the tree. Glinda watched her, before turning back to the tree. Something caught her eye, and she moved closer to get a better look. She reached out a hand, and her fingers graced something... carved? After casting a glance at Elphaba, she returned to the tree, her fingers moving over the carvings slowly. Was that...

... a name?

No.

Two names.

It took a while, but eventually, she was able to make out the names.

F-

"What are you doing?" Glinda gasped, looking up to see Elphaba watching her.

"Nothing." Then, she straightened and hurried to catch up to her new friend. "How old are your brother and sister?" Elphaba sighed.

"Shell is sixteen and Nessarose is fourteen."

"Oh. What do they look like?" Elphaba thought a moment.

"Shell's hair is black, like mine. Like Mother's. He has the same eyes as Mother and I. Nessa's hair is dark brown, and her eyes are blue, like Father's. Shell and I share more traits and similarities than Nessarose and I do."

"I have a little brother. He's in first grade." Elphaba nodded. After walking a while, she settled on a stone, turning to Glinda.

"So, do you have any more questions you'd like answered?" Glinda shrugged.

"Not really. Except..." She glanced at the vault, before turning back to Elphaba. The older girl caught the look crossing her face.

"It's a tomb. My grandfather had it built when my grandmother died. They're both buried within it."

"And your parents?"

"They're not buried there. They will be when they die, but they haven't died."

"Yes they have. If they lived, they'd be in their hundreds by now."

Glinda finally figured out that Elphaba was denying what was right in front of her- that she and her family were dead, that her family home was now owned by an architectural engineer, and that she was a ghost, haunting the cemetery where her body was buried. To Elphaba, it was still ninteen ten, she was still alive, and her family was still living in Colwen Grounds, because her father was still Govenor. To Elphaba, Nest Hardings and the rest of Oz was still as she remembered it, prim and proper, on the brink of new discoveries and inventions, with the whole horizon for the taking.

Wars hadn't been fought, epidemics hadn't passed through, depressions and recessions hadn't taken hold yet. The Great War hadn't disposed of the royal family; the Roaring Twenties hadn't brought on the Great Depression; the Second World War hadn't brought on the Wonder Years, or the Sixties, or the Seventies. To Elphaba, she was still in the Gilded Age of the ninteen-tens, the upper class ruled with an iron fist, as the lower class struggled to survive. She was still living in a world of endless balls and courting beaus, chaperoned dinner parties and afternoon teas; of maids and butlers and jewels and gowns.

"You have lost it. My parents are as alive as your or I. My father is probably in his study right now, going over documents for tomorrows meeting with the Vinkun rulers. And Mother is probably helping Nessarose with her needlework. As for Shell, well, we could never control him. He's most likely at one of the saloons, drinking and kissing the dancers like he so often does. Just because he's the oldest and only son, he's able to get away with murder. Not that Shell actually would, he's too good hearted for that, but he does get into trouble, and then comes to me if he needs help..."

"Um, Elphaba?"

The girl stopped and turned to her.

"What is it?"

"You _do_ realize that it's two-thousand-ten, _don't you_?"

The older girl looked at her, and rolled her eyes.

"Now I know you need locking up in Shizhurst." She stopped, and glanced over Glinda's shoulder. "Didn't you say you have school?"

"So?"

"So, shouldn't you be getting ready?" Glinda looked at her funny, before turning to see the sun beginning to rise. She'd been out all night.

"Oh Oz!" Quickly, she rushed to the gate, scaling it quickly before rushing to the house, leaving Elphaba perched on the gravestone.

"I'll be right here when you get back!" Once the girl was gone, she glanced around clucking her tongue. "_Like I could go anywhere else anyway."_


	9. Chapter 9

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

Glinda managed to slip back into the house and up to the second floor without being caught, and just when she got halfway down the hall, her father came out of the master bedroom, pulling on his coat.

"Morning Glin." She jumped. "What are you doing up?"

"Hi Daddy."

"Hi honey." He went to her and hugged her close. "You're up early."

"Yeah, I got thirsty so I went downstairs and got a glass of water." He nodded.

"All right. Get ready, and I'll take you to school since you're up early."

"Okay." As she continued down the hall, her father asked,

"Glinda, are your pajamas covered in dirt?" She didn't say anything, and instead, hurried to her room, closing the door behind her and pulling her pajamas off. Indeed, her pajamas were covered in dirt, and she hurried to the clothes hamper, throwing them in, before getting dressed. When she slipped a headband on, she glanced at the window, thinking of the cemetery. "Glinda, honey, ready to go?"

"Coming Daddy!" Quickly, she grabbed her bag and rushed from the room. Once they were in the car, her father took her to a small cafe where they got breakfast. It was something that they had done ever since Glinda could remember. Her father would take her to a cafe for breakfast before dropping her off at school.

As they sat at a table in The Wilted Rose cafe- a small cottage house that had originally been a saloon in the late eighteen hundreds and early ninteen hundreds. It became a speakeasy in the twenties, and a dance hall in the forties. In the ninteen-tens, it was a saloon, and the Bright Young Things had spent many nights there, drinking and dancing. When new management had taken it over in the eighties, they turned it into a restaurant, before turning it into a cafe in the ninties.

"I made a friend."

"Really Glinda, that's wonderful honey. What's her name?" Glinda sipped her tea before saying,

"Elphaba."

"That's a very pretty name. What grade is she in?"

Glinda bit her lip.

"She's eighteen." Her father raised his eyebrows.

"Eighteen?" She nodded. "So she's in high school." Glinda shook her head.

"No."

"No? So she's in college?"

"No." After a moment, "She's a ghost."

"A ghost?" Glinda nodded. "You mean imaginary?" She shook her head.

"No. She's a ghost. She's dead. She's buried in the cemetery in our backyard."

"There's a cemetery in our backyard?" She nodded.

"It's just past the little houses in the backyard."

"Little houses? Oh, you mean the slave cabins?" Glinda shrugged.

"I don't know what they are. They're just little houses."

"Slave cabins."

"Slave cabins?" Her father nodded.

"They housed slaves that worked in the fields during the seventeen and eighteen hundreds. The plantations' slaves lived in the cabins. Usually they worked outside in the fields, while house slaves lived in the house with their masters."

"Oh." She took a bite of her cinnamon roll, before asking, "Daddy, who owned the house before us?"

"I think it belonged to the Thropp family, but I'm not entirely sure. Why?"

"Because Elphaba said her parents lived there. She said her father was the Govenor of Munchkinland."

"Your imaginary friend? Could be. Why are you so interested in the house? I thought you hated it here."

Glinda shrugged.

"I don't know."

"Just want to get to know your new home?" Glinda shrugged, nodding slightly. When they finished breakfast, he dropped her off at school. As soon as she got to school, she wandered around, looking for the library. Once she found it, she slipped inside, and went to the librarian's desk.

"Um, hello?" The older woman looked up, to see the young girl standing at the desk.

"Hello, dear, can I help you with something?" Glinda bit her lip.

"Um... do you have anything on... _mumble mumble mumble _grounds..."

"I'm sorry dear, but you're going to have to speak up."

"Do you have anything on the Thropps and Colwen Grounds?"

"The Thropps? You mean the Thropp family?" Glinda nodded. "I'm pretty sure we do. Let's go check, shall we?" And she came out from behind the desk, going through the library to a shelf, Glinda following. "Thropp... Thropp... ah, here we go. These six shelves are all on the Thropp family and the history of Nest Hardings. Is that what you needed?" Glinda nodded.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome, dearie."

When the woman returned to the desk, Glinda turned to the shelves. So many books, where to start? After a moment, she reached up and grabbed a book, pulling it off the shelve. It was a big book titled _The Families of Nest Hardings_. She opened it up and flipped through a couple pages, stopping when she saw a black and white photograph of a family.

The photograph was of a family.

Chairs were set up, and an older gentleman and his wife were seated within them, side by side, with their children around them. A young boy who looked about twelve at the time was standing behind the older woman, while a young girl who couldn't have been more than ten, sat at their feet. She was loosely grasping the man's hand, leaning into his leg. The boy rested his hand on his mother's arm, but what caught Glinda's attention the most, was the young girl standing on the other side, next to her father, standing halfway behind the chair her father was sitting in. She was dressed in a dark dress, her hair pulled back in loose curls, with a bow in her hair, much like her sister. She stood with both hands laid on the back of the chair her father was sitting in. She couldn't have been more than fourteen. What got Glinda, were her features. Though she was younger in the photgraph, it was still her. She was sure of it.

"Elphaba."

They all wore the expression of having sat through countless photographs a thousand times before. Slowly, Glinda's eyes traveled to the printing beneath the page.

_The Thropps of Munchkinland (from back to front): Shell Fenvu and Elphaba Salia, Govenor Frexspar and First Lady Melena, Nessarose Partra. Taken 1906. _

"Elphaba Salia."

Closing the book, she hurried to the desk, and laid it on the counter.

"Excuse me, I'd like to check this out."


	10. Chapter 10

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

**Question: Is this mystery person Fiyero?**

**Answer: you'll have to read and find out**

**Thanks to lizziemagic for**** reviewing 8 and 9.**

Glinda spent most of lunch looking through the book. When school got out, she hurried home, rushing upstairs and into her room, slamming the door behind her. Tossing her bag on her bed, she pulled out the book, a notebook, and pencil, and sat down. Her fingers flew over the pages, her eyes searching for the two chapters on the Thropp family. Each family had two chapters dedicated to them, and so Glinda spent time reading each one. Finally, she found it.

_Chapter 10._

_The Thropps of Munchkinland_

Biting her lip, she began to scan the paragraphs, finally coming to dates.

_...Frexspar and Melena married on April 16th, 1885, at the Church of St. Glinda in Nest Hardings. After beginning a career in politics, Frexspar..._

After writing down the names and wedding date, she searched for the mention of children.

_On May 24rd, 1892, the Thropps welcomed the birth of a daughter, Elphaba Salia... two years later, on July 14th, 1894, they welcomed a son, Shell Fenvu... two years after, Nessarose Parta was born on September 4th, 1896..._

So they'd had three children in the course of five years, with two years between each.

_... things were further complicated due to the oldest daughter's peculiar skintone... born green..._

Glinda started, and reread the sentence. Elphaba had green skin? She shook the thought from her mind, determined to ask Elphaba later.

"Glinda, dinner!" Groaning, she put the book and pad down, and hurried downstairs. Against her better judgement, she told her mother about Elphaba.

"I made a new friend."

"Really? Glinda, honey that's great. What's her name?"

"Elphaba."

"Elphaba?" Glinda nodded. "That sounds like a very pretty name. What grade is she in?"

Glinda bit her lip.

"She's not in school."

"So she's graduated? Is she one of the teachers' aides?"

"No. She's a ghost."

Her mother choked on her coffee.

"A ghost?" Glinda nodded.

"She's not a ghost, Coria, dear, she's imaginary." Mr. Upland said, taking a bite of his spaghetti.

"She's not imaginary! She's a ghost! A real ghost! She doesn't know she's dead!"

"How can a ghost not know they're dead?" Tersan asked, looking at his sister across from the table.

"She just doesn't, okay? She thinks it's ninteen ten and that her father's the Govenor."

"Governor _of what_?"

"Of Munchkinland."

"There was no Govenor! You're lying!"

Glinda glared at her brother.

_"I am not! I looked it up!"_

_"Where, the internet?"_

_"No-o. The school library! They have six shelves on the Thropps and Nest Hardings. I even checked out a book on the Thropps. It's up in my room. They were real."_

_"In your mind!"_

Just as Glinda opened her mouth to respond, her father spoke up.

"That's enough, both of you!"

The arguement stopped, and they returned to dinner. When it was finished, Glinda rushed upstairs and changed into her pajamas, before pulling on her coat, grabbing the book, and rushing downstairs.

"I'm going outside!" Her parents let her go, knowing she wouldn't get into much- if any- trouble at all. And when Tersan asked if he could go out also, they told him okay, but to stay where he could see the house. Once outside, Glinda rushed to the cemetery and scaled the fence, not knowing that Tersan was following. "Elphaba! Elphaba, I'm back! I brought you a cookie! Elphaba?" She looked around for several minutes, searching behind the stones, before going to the tomb. "Elphaba?"

There was no sight nor sound of her friend. Sighing, she sat on the ground, and turned to a fresh sheet of notebook paper before opening the library book. She spent the next several minutes writing out facts, and doing math, leaning against the fence around the tomb.

"What are you doing?" Her head snapped up, to see Elphaba standing over her.

"Elphaba! You came!" She cried, climbing to her feet.

"Why wouldn't I come? I'm always in this cemetery." She watched the younger girl, before glancing at the ground, seeing the book. "What's that?"

"Oh. A library book. I got it out of the school library. See?" Glinda said, picking it up and showing Elphaba the cover. "Cookie?" Elphaba wrinkled her nose briefly.

"... No thank you." She replied, politely declining. Then, she turned her attention to the book, as Glinda flipped through it.

"... See, they dedicated a whole two chapters to your family!" Glinda cried, pointing to the photograph. Elphaba leaned close, studying it.

"I remember that." She whispered, reaching out to run her fingers over the photo; but only succeeded in putting her fingers through the book instead. "Mother made me try four different dresses before she decided on the dark blue paisley. Then she spent two hours deciding on how my hair should be, before deciding on pulling it back. Nessa was harder to get ready. She threw a fit, not wanting to get ready, and when we had to sit for the portrait, she dug her feet in and didn't want to. She was only ten. And Shell... he tried to act like the man of the house, going so far as to chastise Nessa for acting like a child. And then of course I had to chastise Shell for chastising Nessa." She laughed softly. "Shell and Nessa have never gotten along."

"Where were you?" Elphaba shrugged.

"Around. I'm always here. I never go very far."

"Can't you go downtown?" Elphaba opened her mouth to speak, when someone spoke up.

_"Who are you talking to?"_


	11. Chapter 11

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

**Thanks to Grumbello for reviewing 10.**

Glinda's head snapped up, and her eyes widened to see Tersan come out from behind a tree- the same tree that the carving was on.

"Tersan!"

"Who are you talking to, Glinda?" He demanded, his small hands on his hips. She opened her mouth, and glanced at Elphaba, but Elphaba's pretty face had twisted in rage. Without warning, she rushed to the little boy, beating at him.

"Elphaba!"

"Who's Elphaba?" Tersan asked, tumbling back against the tree, his back hitting the carvings on the wood.

_"Get away from it! Don't touch it! Get away!" _Glinda stood shocked, as Elphaba attacked her brother- well tried. Her fists kept going through the boy, but the sudden chill was enough to get Tersan to move away from the tree with the carving on it.

"Is it always this cold?" He asked, rubbing his arms.

"She doesn't like you being near the tree."

"What?"

"Elphaba. She doesn't like you being near the tree. It has a carving on it. Names."

"Who's Elphaba?"

"_I told you_, she's my friend." The little boy glanced back at the tree; Elphaba stood fiercly guarding it, glaring at the boy. "And she's not happy with you. Actually, she's down right pissed."

"Why?"

"Because you were near the carving."

"What carving?"

"The carving on that tree... why are we talking about this? What are you doing here, Tersan?" Glinda demanded.

"Momma and Daddy said I could go outside. As long as I stayed in sight of the house."

"But why did you follow me?"

"Because I wanted to see who you were talking to."

Glinda rolled her eyes. "I told you. I'm talking to Elphaba."

"What's she look like?"

"What?"

"What's she look like?"

"You know what she looks like."

Elphaba cleared her throat. "He can't see me." Elphaba muttered, glaring at the little boy.

"Oh."

"Oh what?"

"Never mind." Tersan raised an eyebrow.

"What's she look like if you can see her." Glinda thought a moment, before turning to the book.

"She's tall. With long black hair and violet eyes. And green skin. And she's dressed in a long white dress."

"Green skin?" Glinda nodded, and then held out the book.

"See. That was her when she was fourteen. She's eighteen." Tersan studied the photo, before going back to the tree, and leaning against it, only to be pushed away by Elphaba, who shrieked and shoved him. "She really doesn't like you being near that tree." Tersan turned, to see nothing there.

"There's no one there." Elphaba glanced at Glinda, and then glared at Tersan.

"She's there. You just can't see her." After a moment, she thought of something. "Elphaba!" The older girl turned towards the ten-year-old. "Say something!" She raised an eyebrow.

"Say something?" Glinda nodded. "What's that going to accomplish? He can't see me, so there's really no point-"

"Do you hear that?" Glinda cried, turning back to her brother.

"Hear what?"

"That voice!" He shook his head.

"I don't hear anything."

"It's not going to work, Glinda." Elphaba told her, tossing her head, her long raven hair falling down her shoulders. "He can't see me."

"Tersan! Go stand by the tree!"

"What?" He glanced at Glinda.

"Why?"

"No. No! He is not going to come anywhere near this tree! Do you understand me, Glinda?"

"Just do it!"

"But-"

"-Over my dead body!"

But Glinda ignored both Tersan's questions and Elphaba's threats of abandonment. Instead, she shoved her brother towards the tree, and then watched, as Elphaba let out a shriek and attacked him, eventually shoving him to the ground. Quickly, Glinda rushed to her brother's side.

"Calm down!"

_"Keep him away from my tree and I will!"_ Elphaba snapped, taking a seat at the base, and crossing her arms over her chest, glaring at the children. Glinda returned to her brother, lifting up the front of his shirt.

"See. She scratched you." She pointed to the three very distinct red scratch marks on her brother's stomach. "Now does she not exist?" Tersan looked down at the scratches.

"I guess so." He whispered. Then, Glinda stood and helped her brother up before turning to Elphaba.

"Sorry Elphaba." The girl didn't say anything, just stood and moved past them.

"What's she doing now?" Glinda turned to her brother.

"Sitting on a tombstone." Tersan met her eyes.

"Sitting on a tombstone?" Glinda nodded. They followed Elphaba, before Glinda took a seat on a stone, and after watching his sister, Tersan did the same, albeit uneasily.

"So what are you planning on doing with the book?" Elphaba asked. Glinda shrugged.

"I don't know. Maybe research your family."

Elphaba rolled her eyes.

"You could ask me about my family. I know all about them. Every one of them. I know how they think, how they act... what I'd like to know is why they decide on things that don't concern them." She whispered, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. Glinda looked at her quizzically.

"What things? Elphaba, what things?"

Elphaba didn't answer, she just glanced over Glinda's shoulder at the tree with the carving, near the tomb. Both Glinda and Tersan looked back at the tree, before turning back to Elphaba.

"Does it have something to do with the tree? Elphaba, does it have something to do with the carving on the tree?"


	12. Chapter 12

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

**Question: What's with the tree?**

**Answer: you'll find out as the story goes on**

**Thanks to Grumbello for reviewing 11.**

Elphaba didn't say anything. She just looked down at her hands.

"It has something to do with the tree, doesn't it?"

Before Elphaba could respond, they heard their mother.

"Tersan! Glinda, come inside and go to bed!"

Tersan quickly slipped off the stone and hurried to the gate, but Glinda took her time, going to collect her books and pencil. When she went to the gate, she looked back, to see Elphaba still sitting on the stone, staring at her hands. After a moment, she climbed over the fence and hurried to the house, going inside, not without a glance at the cemetery.

"What are you looking at, Glin?" Mrs. Upland asked, following her daughter's gaze. Glinda looked back at her mother.

"Nothing." She said, going into the house.

"She was looking at the cemetery." Tersan said, reaching into the cookie jar.

"You know the rule, Ters, no sweets before bed. Come on." Sighing, Tersan did as told, going through the kitchen and dining room and into the foyer.

"Why were you looking at the cemetery?" Mrs. Upland said, as she and the kids went upstairs. Before Glinda could say a word, Tersan spoke up.

"Because Elphaba's there." Tersan said, pulling his shirt over his head once he was in his room. It was then that Mrs. Upland saw the scratches.

"Oh Oz, Tersan!" Mr. Upland came running, stopping in the doorway of his son's room. "What happened? What scratched you?" She asked, kneeling down to look at the scratches closer. Tersan looked down at the scratches, before glancing at Glinda.

"Elphaba scratched me."

"What?" Mrs. Upland looked up at her son.

"Elphaba. She scratched me."

"Elphaba? You mean Glinda's imaginary friend?" Mr. Upland said, joining his wife to get a better look.

"She's not imaginary." Tersan said. "She's a ghost. Glinda showed me a picture of her." Suddenly, Glinda found herself the object of her parents' study.

"A picture?" Mr. Upland asked. Glinda nodded. "Let me see this picture."

Slowly, Glinda opened the book and turned to the chapter on the Thropps. She held out the book, the page with the family portrait showing.

"She's the one on the right, standing behind the man."

Her father studied the picture, before turning another page, and looking through the photographs. A couple photographs were of the Govenor and his wife, a few were of the family together, the three children together, and the children with friends. He turned to the opposite page, his eyes landing on a black and white photograph of a young girl, dressed in a beautiful evening gown, her dark hair pulled back in a pile of curls. She was perched on a bench, outside, among roses, as though on a moonlit walk.

After a moment, he handed the book back to Glinda, who closed it and held it to her chest.

"So that's your friend?" She nodded.

"I told you she was real."

"And she did this to your brother?" Mrs. Upland cried, turning back to the scratches. Glinda shrugged softly.

"He was near a tree in the cemetery, and she didn't like it. There's something about that tree that Elphaba's trying to protect."

Her father raised an eyebrow.

"A tree?" Glinda nodded.

"There's a tree in the cemetery, near the tomb, with two names carved into it. She's trying to protect it, she won't let anyone near it."

Her father nodded slowly, glancing at his wife. After a moment, Mrs. Upland stood, turning to her daughter.

"Glinda, I think you need to get a good night's sleep."

"But-"

_"Making up stories is one thing, but involving your little brother! Saying a ghost is living in the cemetery behind our house and that she's got some sort of fetish with a tree, is ridiculous! These stories of yours are getting out of control!"_

_"It's not a fetish! There's something carved on the tree that she's trying to protect! And they're not stories! Elphaba's real! She talks to me! She listens! She doesn't tell me I'm making up stories and she's NOT IMAGINARY!" _

Mrs. Upland took a deep breath.

"Go to your room. Now."

"But Mama-"

"Now, Glinda!"

"But-"

"You're to go to school tomorrow and come _straight_ home. You are _not to go the cemetery tomorrow_, do you hear me?"

_"But Mama that's not fair! Elphaba will be waiting for me! She'll never forgive me if I don't show up!"_

_"Then she'll have to deal with it. You're not going to the cemetery tomorrow, understand?"_ Glinda tried hard to keep the tears from crowding her eyes, and she nodded.

"Yes."

"Good. Now go to bed." After a moment, Glinda turned and fled the room, rushing to her own room and slamming the door once she was inside. Mrs. Upland sighed.

"Coria, she's a little girl. This is just a phase, it'll pass."

"I hope so Merku. I hope so." After his parents retired to their room, Tersan slipped down the hall to his sister's. He found Glinda in bed, the book against her chest, sobbing into the pillow.

"Linny?"

_"Go away."_

Silently, the little boy slipped into the room and went to his sister's bed.

"I'm sorry I got you in trouble, Linny." She choked out a sob, looking into Tersan's eyes.

_"Mama won't let me see Elphaba tomorrow. She thinks I'm making her up... I'm not... I'm not..."_

"I know."

_"Elphaba's the only friend I've got... If I'm not there, she'll never forgive me..."_ Gently, Tersan reached up and wiped his sister's tears away.

"I could go."

_"You can't see her. Or hear her." _Glinda choked out, sniffling.

"I could try."

Glinda shook her head.

"It wouldn't work... but thanks anyway..." He nodded, leaning over to kiss her cheek.

"I'm sorry, Linny." Then, he left, softly closing the door behind him. Once he was gone, Glinda broke down again, burying her face in the pillow, the book held tight in her arms.


	13. Chapter 13

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

The next morning, Glinda got up and dressed, her mind on the fight the night before. Her mother had no right to forbid her from seeing Elphaba. Elphaba was her friend- her only friend- and she wasn't going to lose the only friend she had because her mother told her she couldn't see her. When her father dropped her off at school that morning, he turned the car off and turned to her.

"Glinda," The girl just sniffled. "I know you think what Mama did was unfair, but she's just looking out for you and Tersan. She doesn't want you to get hurt. It's not because she doesn't love you, it's just that she's protective." He gently brushed a curl off her cheek. "Okay, honey?"

She sniffled and turned to him.

"But Daddy, Elphaba won't hurt me. She's nice, she talks to me. She doesn't treat me like a child." She reached up to wipe a tear off her cheek. "Elphaba wouldn't hurt me. And she only hurt Tersan because I told him to go stand near the tree, so that he'd see that she's real. That's why she scratched Tersan, because I asked her to, to prove that she was real. I didn't mean to hurt him. I wanted him to believe me."

He reached over and brushed a tear off her cheek.

"Shh. It's okay."

She shook her head.

"No it's not. It's not okay."

"Why isn't it, Lina?" He asked, using his petname for his oldest. "What's not okay?" She took a deep breath.

"Elphaba's... s... sad."

"Why is she sad?" He whispered, brushing another tear off her cheek.

"Because her parents did something to her... but she won't say what... S... something happened... something bad... but... she won't... tell me..."

He pulled his daughter into a hug, and held her. After several moments, he started the car.

"You're going to take the day off, Lina, okay? We're going to talk about this."

She didn't say anything, just let her father drive. She watched the scenery change as they drove through town, tears sliding down her cheeks. When he finally stopped the car in the museum parking lot, he turned off the ignition and turned to her.

"Okay Lina, tell me."

"What?" She turned to him.

"Tell me. Tell me about Elphaba. What's she look like? What's she sound like? How does she dress? How old is she? What's her background? Talk to me. Tell me about her."

The girl sniffled, wiping her eyes, and lowering the book to her lap. She didn't say anything for several minutes, and her father sighed, started the car again, and left the parking lot. They stopped at The Wilted Rose, where he bought a cup of coffee, a cup of hot cocoa, and two cinnamon rolls. Then, they drove to a nearby park, and parked in the shade. Once he'd parked the car, he unbuckled the seatbelts and turned to her.

"So tell me about her. Tell me about Elphaba." After a moment, he reached out an wiped a tear off her cheek. "Lina, talk to me, sweetheart." The girl swallowed the bite she'd taken, and looked at her father. "What's she look like? Like that picture in the book you showed me last night?" She nodded. "Let me see it." And he took the book off his daughter's lap and opened it, turning to the chapters on Elphaba's family. He studied the photographs for several minutes, before saying, "She's pretty." Glinda nodded. "Dark hair?"

"Black." Glinda whispered.

"Black hair. And... blue eyes? No, brown."

Glinda shook her head.

"No. Purple."

"Purple? You mean violet?" She nodded. "Black hair, violet eyes... and... it says here green skin." Glinda nodded again. "Well, I'd say that makes for one gorgeous girl." She took a sip of her cocoa, as her father turned another page in the book. "What's she sound like, Glin?" The girl shrugged.

"What do you mean, Daddy?"

"I mean does she sound like someone from the City? Or someone from Gillikin? Does she have an accent?" He clarified, closing the book and setting it on the dashboard. Glinda thought a moment.

"Kind of." She swallowed, meeting her father's eyes. "It's funny. She pronounces every letter and..."

"She enunciates?" She nodded.

"And... her voice is soft... but... like a singer..."

"Full? Warm?" Glinda nodded. "Like Aunt Denaa's voice?" She nodded again. "How does she dress?"

Glinda twirled a curl around her finger.

"She always wears the same thing. A white dress. The shoulders are ripped, and hang down her arms, and the top is kind of low cut- not a lot low cut, but-"

"Just slightly?" She nodded.

"It's a circular kind of... like a heart in the middle..."

"Sweetheart cut?" She nodded.

"The skirt's long... long and jagged, like someone cut it with a knife. And there's a while tie thing around her wiast, that ties in the back in a bow, with long ribbon..."

"A sash?" She nodded again. "Hmm... could it be a wedding dress?"

Glinda shook her head.

"No. Elphaba didn't say she was married. She's eighteen."

"It wasn't uncommon for girls to marry at eighteen back then, Lina."

"But Elphaba's not. She never brings it up, and she looks sad when she talks about her parents' marriage."

"She's eighteen?" Glinda nodded. "What's her background?"

"I don't understand."

"What's her family history?"

She thought a moment.

"She's the Govenor's daughter." He injested this, before starting the car again. They drove back into town, and he pulled into the museum parking lot. "Where are we, Daddy?" They climbed out of the car, and Mr. Upland grabbed the book and handed it to her.

"We're at the museum, sweetheart."

"Why?" She asked, slipping her hand into his as he led her up the steps.

"Because I think these people would have a lot more information on your ghost than a library book would." He told her, opening the door and following her inside.


	14. Chapter 14

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

**Question: she's so upset isn't she?**

**Answer: yeah, she is**

**Thanks to Ice Silver Crystal, Grumbello and anglekitty for reviewing 13.**

"Good morning, how are you today?"

Glinda turned to see the woman at the desk.

"We're doing okay." She slowly looked around as her father bought two tickets. The main lobby of the museum held an old-fashioned sleigh in the far corner, and checking to make sure her father was preoccupied, she went to it. When she was close enough, she reached out to run her fingers over the trim- "Glinda!" She jumped, dropping her book in the sleigh and stumbling against it. Quickly, her father and one of the tour guides rushed towards her. "Glinda, you're not supposed to touch it." Mr. Upland sighed, lifting her into his arms; the girl was light enough that her father could carry her.

She leaned down, reaching for the sleigh.

"Daddy, my book."

The tour guide picked it up and glanced at the cover. Then, she flipped through it, stopping on the photograph of the Thropps.

"Ah, the Thropp family."

"Do you know about them?" Glinda asked, resting her head on her father's shoulder. The young woman nodded.

"Milla here is an expert on the Thropps." The woman who ran the desk told them, joining the small group. Glinda raised her head.

"You do?" The young woman nodded.

"You interested in them?"

"Glinda's... got a close friend that's a Thropp, and she wants to know more about them."

Milla raised her eyebrows. "You do?" Glinda nodded. "That's kind of impossible, seeing as the last of the Thropp family died back in the sixties." Glinda blushed.

"But-"

"Her friend is a ghost." Mr. Upland said. Milla nodded.

"Ah, so you've got a ghost for a friend. And he's a Thropp?"

"She. It's a girl." Glinda whispered.

"She. All right, let's let started on the tour, shall we?" Handing Glinda the book, Milla turned and led them into the first exhibit. It was a nice exhibit, but barely attracted Glinda's attention, and eventually, her father set her back on her feet. Milla, noticing the girl's lack of interest, knelt in front of her. "I bet you want to see something on the Thropps, don't you?" Glinda nodded. She held out her hand, glancing at Mr. Upland, who nodded. "Come on." After glancing at her father, Glinda took the woman's hand, and they followed her through the museum, towards a huge room at the back.

Glinda's eyes widened at the size of the room, as well as what was in the room. Slowly, Milla knelt down to meet her eyes. "What do you think? Better?" She nodded. Standing, Milla turned to the first exhibit in the room, a beautiful chaise lounge. As she began on the history of the family, Glinda let go of her hand and wandered around. She passed photographs of the family, children's toys, and other things you'd find in a Victorian mansion. Passing by the photograhs, she found herself amid glass cases and red ropes, that held clothing within their boundaries.

Checking to make sure the others weren't watching, she went to the closest outfit- a beautiful, pale blue summer frock. A wide- brimmed straw boater, with a dark blue ribbon around the crown was balanced on the knob of the dressform, and a pair of black button boots sat below the dress. Beneath the dress, was a photograph with a description of the gown and who it belonged to.

_Summer frock belonging to Elphaba Salia (1892- 1910), circa 1902. Taken at Caprice-in-the-Pines._

Next to the description, was a photograph of Elphaba, sitting on a rock near a lake. She looked about Glinda's age. Unable to help herself, she reached out to run her fingers over the soft material of the dress. The pretty white ribbon threaded through the ruffled hem shimmered in the light. The material was soft between her fingers, and she leaned close- the material smelled slightly of dust and... roses?

"Glinda!" She jumped, turning to see her father and Milla join her. "You aren't supposed to touch the exhibits, honey." She hung her head.

"Sorry."

Milla chuckled softly.

"It's all right. Children can't help it, it's understandable." Then, she turned to the frock. "Do you like it?" Glinda nodded.

"It's pretty."

"This frock belonged to the Govenor's oldest daughter, Elphaba." Then, Milla pointed to a portrait hanging over the dresses.

It was of a pretty young girl, no older than sixteen, dressed in a pretty evening gown of dark blue. Her hair was pulled back into a cascade of raven curls, and her green skin glowed with youth and vitality. Her violet eyes watched the three, and for the first time, Glinda felt scared of her friend.

"Elphaba was born on May 24th, 1892, the oldest child of Frexspar and Melena Thropp. Due to Munchkin custom, Elphaba inherited the title of Thropp Third Descending. She would inherit the governorship on her father's death, but her husband would do most of the work, while she would just be the figurhead."

_"And when I marry, my husband will be the govenor."_

Glinda tugged on the woman's pants leg. She looked down at the little girl.

"But that's not fair. Shouldn't she have been govenor if she was going to inherit it?"

"Back then, women weren't allowed to hold office, Glin. It was very rare for a woman to hold any sort of office. Things weren't like they are today, sweetheart. Girls were expected to find a good husband, not marry for love." Milla nodded, before leaning down.

"Would you like to see somethings we don't have in the museum?" Glinda nodded. "Come on."

And she led them through the museum, to a storage area. After unlocking it, Milla held the door open and let them enter before following. Inside, were boxes and file cabinets filled with objects that weren't currently on display. Moving past Glinda and her father, Milla went to a shelve, and searched the boxes, before beckoning them over. She lifted the lid of a box, and pulled something out as Mr. Upland lifted Glinda into his arms. She leaned close, to see what Milla held.

It was a porcelian doll.

She had green skin and violet eyes, raven hair and wore a white pale pink dress with black shoes.

Then, Milla held the doll out to Glinda. The girl glanced at Milla, before reaching out and taking the doll. Gently, she ran her finger over the doll's eyes.

"It belonged to Elphaba, when she was a child." A small smile came over Glinda's features, and she gently ran her fingers over the black curls. "When the museum recieved the things from the Thropp mansion, this doll was tucked in a hope chest."

"How do you know it was Elphaba's?" Mr. Upland asked.

"Because if you look at the back of her neck, Mr. Thropp had her initials engraved with the date. And she gently pushed the hair aside, showing the engraving.

_E.S.T. May 24th, 1898_

Glinda looked up, meeting Milla's eyes, before handing the doll back to her. Once it was packed away, Milla showed them several more things, before coming to a dressform, that held a beautiful white dress.

"Do you know what this is?" Milla asked the little girl. Glinda shook her head. "This," She reached into a hatbox at the foot of the dressform and pulled out a veil, before perching it over the knot of the form. "Was supposed to be Elphaba's wedding dress."

"Her wedding dress?" Milla nodded.

"In ninteen oh nine, Frexspar arranged a marriage between Elphaba and Avaric of Tenmeadows. They were to be married in August of nineteen ten, when Elphaba was eighteen. From the time the marriage was announced, there were rumors going around that Elphaba had fallen in love with someone else, and that she was planning on running away with him. Her father denied the rumors, and they went along with planning the wedding. However, Elphaba died before she ever said 'I do.' She died of the Western flu- Influenza- on May twenty-fourth, nineteen ten. Her eighteenth birthday. They buried her in the family tomb behind Colwen Grounds, and when Melena Thropp's niece passed away in ninteen sixty-six, her daughter gave all of the the families possessions to the museum."

"Colwen Grounds?" Milla nodded at the little girl.

"You know it?"

"We... just moved into Colwen Grounds." Mr. Upland said, as Glinda rested her head on her father's shoulder. Milla nodded.

"Then you're living in a part of history." Milla said, as they left the storage unit. "Look sharp, you might find history right under your nose." She said, as they stopped at the main desk. Then, she grabbed something from a small box, and handed it to her. A sucker. "It was nice to meet both of you. Come back again."

"Thank you." Milla waved them off with a smile. When they were back in the car, Mr. Upland turned to Glinda.

"Feel better, Lina?" She nodded. As they drove home, Glinda said,

"Daddy?"

"Hmm?"

"Did Elphaba mean to die?"

"I don't think so, sweetheart. She got sick. Back then, there weren't vaccinations to treat Influenza, so lots of people died. What's sad, is that she died on her birthday."

Glinda nodded, twirling the sucker between her fingers. When they pulled into the driveway, Mrs. Upland met them in the yard; home early from work.

"You had better have a_ good explanation _for keeping Glinda out of school today, Merku."


	15. Chapter 15

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

Mr. Upland glanced at his daughter, before looking back at his wife.

"Go on in the house, Lina. I'll talk to Mama." The girl did as told, glancing back at her parents before rushing upstairs. Once upstairs, she slipped into her room, and threw her bag on her bed. After a moment, she went to the door, and hearing the voices downstairs, slipped out of her room, and went downstairs.

"She was to go to school and come straight home, Merku!"

"Coria, have you noticed how stressed she's become? She needed a day to herself-"

As soon as Glinda entered the living room, her parents stopped argueing.

"I'm sorry." She whispered, tears in her eyes. Mrs. Upland sighed and sat down on the sofa.

"Come here, Glinda." Slowly, the girl went to her mother. "Honey, I just... you scared me last night..."

"But Mama, Elphaba scratched Tersan because I asked her too. I didn't to..." She burst into tears, and her father gently pushed her to the staircase. The girl fled back to her room, but not before hearing,

"Let her have this, Coria. This move hasn't been easy for her, let her have this."

Once she was back in her room, she lay on her bed, staring up at the ceiling, thinking about the afternoon. Eventually, she drifted off to sleep...

When she awoke, dinner was ready, and sighing, she got up and went downstairs for dinner. Dinner was silent, with only Tersan talking, telling about his day. Glinda didn't say anything, and her parents engaged in conversation with her little brother, leaving her to think. When dinner was done and they all retired to bed, Glinda pulled her pajamas and coat on, grabbed her notebook and a pencil, and slipped out of her room. As she moved down the hallway, a voice stopped her, causing her to gasp and spin around, only to reveal Tersan in his pajamas, standing behind her.

"Where are you going?"

"Tersan! What are you doing?"

He moved closer to her.

"Where are you going?"

"N... no where." Then, she turned and continued to the stairs. He followed.

"You're going to see Elphaba, aren't you?" When she didn't answer, he gasped. "Mama told you that you can't go see her! You're not allowed!" Glinda stopped on the stairs and turned to him.

"I don't care!" Then, she turned and continued down the stairs, hurrying through the house and out into the backyard, Tersan on her heels. When they made it to the cemetery, Glinda searched the stones, calling for her. "Elphaba! Elphaba!"

"Maybe she's not here?"

Glinda turned to glare at her brother.

"She's always here. She wouldn't not be here now." After several moments of searching, she sat down on the ground, the notebook in her lap. Slowly, Tersan sat next to her.

"I'm sorry, Linny." He whispered. She shrugged, sniffling.

"What are you crying about now?" Glinda's head snapped up, to see Elphaba standing in front of them, her hands on her hips.

"Elphaba!" Quickly, Glinda scrambled to her feet and rushed to throw her arms around the older girl, when Elphaba backed up.

"You'll just go through me, remember?" The girl stopped, and nodded.

"Um, Linny?"

"She's right here, Tersan." Glinda said, glancing back at her brother before turning back to her friend. Elphaba turned her violet gaze to the little boy who was shuffling his feet in the dirt, studying him.

"Sorry about... scratching him..." Elphaba muttered, embarrassed. Glinda nodded, before turning to her brother.

"She said she's sorry she scratched you." Tersan shrugged, embarrassed. "Um, Elphaba?"

"What is it?" The younger girl watched her friend perch on a tombstone, tucking her hair behind her ear.

"Um," She didn't know how to word this, and was afraid of how Elphaba would react. "Um... Ah... I went to the museum today."

"Did you?" Elphaba asked, examining her cuticles. Glinda nodded, taking a seat on a nearby tombstone. "Let me guess, you saw a bunch of old cars and dinnerware." She muttered.

"I saw your wedding dress."

Elphaba's head snapped up, and she locked eyes on Glinda. "You... you saw..." She couldn't finish, and instead hopped off the stone and pushed past the children, going to the tree. Her back to them, she rested her head against the bark, and reached out to trace the carving.

"The lady said it was arranged. That you were supposed to get married at eighteen to... Avaric..." The name felt funny on her tongue.

"Avaric Kersan, Meagrave of Tenmeadows." Elphaba whispered, her fingers tracing the 'F'. "Father arranged it a year earlier, spring of ninteen hundred and nine; setting the wedding for the fourth of August, nineteen hundred and ten, three months after I turned eighteen."

"Did you get married?" Tersan asked. Glinda glanced at him, shaking her head.

"No. she died before the wedding. Of Influenza." Elphaba scoffed softly.

"Influenza. Who told you that?"

"The tour guide." Elphaba glanced over at Glinda, before turning back to the carving. "She said you died on your birthday." Elphaba didn't answer. "She said you're buried in the family tomb. Here behind Colwen Grounds." Elphaba glanced at the tomb quickly, as Glinda moved to face her, dragging her brother behind her. Uneasy, Tersan glanced over his shoulder at the foreboding family vault. Then, he tugged on Glinda's arm.

"Linny-"

"Shh."

"Linny-"

_"Shh!"_

_"Linny!"_

_"What?"_

"That tomb?" He asked, pointing to it. She nodded.

"Yes, that tomb."

Slowly, Elphaba met her eyes.

"I don't know where I'm going to be buried."


	16. Chapter 16

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

"What do you mean you don't know where you're going to be buried? Aren't you going to be buried with your family?"

Elphaba shrugged, and continued to trace the carving on the tree. Glinda bit her lip, before saying,

"The lady said that... that there were rumors that you were in love with someone else. That... that you were going to run away with him."

The older girl sighed, before taking a deep breath.

"We were going to. But then Father caught us... and everything went to hell."

"Caught who?" Slowly, Glinda moved close to her. "Who was with you?" Elphaba met her eyes, sighing. She swallowed, trying to decide whether she should tell Glinda or not. The girl seemed trustworthy; she was a child, and children didn't generally tell secrets; they kept more than they told.

What harm could come of it? Could any?

After a while, she reached up and wiped a tear away, taking a deep breath.

"His name was..." She swallowed the tears choking her voice. "His name's Fiyero."

Glinda raised her eyebrows.

"Feeyero?" The pronounciation was strange, foreign. Elphaba nodded.

"Fiyero Tiggular." She took another deep breath. "He's a Vinkun prince. The Crown Prince." Tears clouded her vision and ran down her cheeks; Glinda noted the tracks of silver running down her cheeks.

"I... I'm sorry."

Elphaba ignored her, moving away from the tree and going to the fence. She grasped the iron, leaning against it, staring at the tomb, before choking out a sob and sliding down the fence. She sat with her knees to her chest, her head resting against the iron. Sharing a glance with her brother, who shrugged because he didn't know what was going or where she was, Glinda went to the older girl, sitting in front of her.

"Elphaba? What happened?"

The older girl choked out a sob, closing her eyes and shaking her head.

"I love him." She choked out, meeting Glinda's eyes. _"I love him." _Her whisper was breathless, heartbreaking, and Glinda found herself wiping tears off her own cheeks as Elphaba broke into sobs. She reached out to touch her, but stopped, remembering that she couldn't. So instead, she sat, listening to Elphaba's sobs, wishing she could do something for her.

"How did you meet?" Elphaba didn't respond, just brushed a strand of hair away from her face. "Is that who's carved into the tree? That you're trying to protect? Is that his name?" Elphaba nodded slightly. "How did you meet him?"

"Linny-"

"Not now, Tersan."

"Linny-" He glanced behind him.

"Not now, Tersan." Then, she turned back to Elphaba. "Where did you meet?" Elphaba met her eyes, choking out a sob.

"At... at a state dinner... my father was... holding..."

"How old were you when you met?"

She watched Elphaba reach up to wipe tears off her cheeks.

"I'd... just turned sixteen." She burst into sobs again, and buried her face in her hands.

"What happened to him?" Elphaba shook her head, refusing to say anything, and instead, climbed to her feet and rushed past the children. "Elphaba!"

"What happened?" Glinda glanced back at her brother.

"She ran off."

Then, she grabbed her notebook and pencil, grabbed his hand and rushed after Elphaba. They picked their way through the gravestones, keeping their eyes open for a flash of white. Finally, they stopped, and Glinda saw Elphaba, laying under an old apple tree, her face buried in the dying grass. Her sobs wrenched at Glinda's heart, and the girl let go of her brother's hand and moved towards her friend.

She knelt down next to the older girl, watching her, silent. Taking a shaky breath, she reached out to touch her, despite the fact that she couldn't. But Elphaba, sensing her close, lifted her head and looked at her. After a moment, she took a deep breath and backed away from her.

"Elphaba, I... I'm sorry."

A sob escaped her throat, and as Glinda reached out to try to wipe a tear away, Elphaba shoved her away roughly.

_"GET OUT!"_

Glinda stood, picking up her notebook. She glanced back at Tersan, but he had already gone back to the house.

"Elphaba..."

But the girl didn't listen, instead, she stood and rushed towards her, shoving and scratching and screeching.

_"GET OUT!" _

Finally, Glinda did as told, rushing through the cemetery, Elphaba's sobs in her ears. She stopped to catch her breath at the tree, leaning against it, when her arm brushed against the carving. Glancing back at Elphaba, she turned to the carving and knelt close, reading it. They were names, but she couldn't make them out. Her mind ran through several different ideas, before she realized that she had a notebook and a pencil.

Turning to a clean page, she set the paper against the carving, and then took her pencil and ran it over the paper, making a rubbing of the carving. When she was done, she flipped her notebook closed, slipped her pencil in her coat pocket, and, glancing once more back towards Elphaba, rushed to the fence, climbing over it before rushing to the house. She managed to slip back inside without getting caught, and up to the second floor, where the creaking floorboards woke her father.

She stopped, gasping when he came into the hallway.

"Lina? What are you doing out of bed?"

"I... I left my notebook in the car, and I went to get it. It has my homework in it." He yawned, nodding.

"All right. Go back to bed, sweetheart, okay?"

"Okay, Daddy."

When she finally slipped into her room, she took her coat of and sat on her bed, turning her bedside lamp on. Then, she opened the notebook, turning to the rubbing. It took a while for her to figure out the lettering due to her eyes adjusting, but once they had, she read the names softly, her breath catching at the realization of what they meant.

Elphaba Thropp + Fiyero Tiggular


	17. Chapter 17

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

Glinda awoke the next morning with the notebook on the floor. After getting dressed, she picked it up, seeing the rubbing, and for a moment, forgot what it was. But suddenly, everything came back, and she sat on the bed, running her fingers over it, tracing the letters.

Elphaba Thropp + Fiyero Tiggular

From everything she'd read, craving names into a tree meant loving the person forever and ever. It meant they belonged to each other; it was a way of promising themselves to each other.

As she looked at the names, she thought back on Elphaba's words.

_"I love him." _

Her heartbroken sobs came back, constricting Glinda's chest, as she continued to trace the names. The pain in Elphaba's eyes, the way she'd reacted to Glinda's probing, the sobs escaping her, were all proof that she loved this Fiyero deeply, and wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. But when Glinda asked, she'd refused to tell her what had happened him, or what had happened to herself. She'd scoffed when Glinda mentioned Influenza, as though denying that that was how she died. Or was going to die, seeing as she refused to acknowledge the fact that she was dead.

Sighing, she got up and went downstairs, the notebook in her bag. She found her father at the table, reading the paper. It was his day off, so all he had to do was wait for the kids to get ready.

"Ready Lina?" She nodded, as he set the paper down.

"Glinda's not going to school today, Merku." Both turned to Mrs. Upland.

"Why not, Mama?" Her mother sighed.

"I talked to both your teachers and Tersan's, and we all agreed that it'd be best if you both took the rest of the week off in order to adjust. Your teachers agreed."

"So I'm not going to school today?" Mrs. Upland shook her head.

"Nope."

"Or tomorrow?"

"No."

"Or Friday?"

"No."

She bit her lip, not sure how she was supposed to take this. "Okay." Then, she removed her book bag and set it on the table, sat down, and pulled out the notebook, opening it to the rubbing.

"What's that, Lina?" She looked up, to see her father studying it. As she opened her mouth to speak, Tersan beat her to it.

"It's what's carved on the tree!"

"What tree?" Mr. Upland asked, looking at his son.

"The tree in the cemetery. Near the tomb. That Elphaba's protecting!"

"What tomb? And what is Elphaba trying to protect exactly?" He asked, turning to his daughter. She bit her lip, before looking at her father.

"There's a tomb in the cemetery, near this tree. Elphaba's family is buried there. She was trying to protect this." She pointed to the names. "I don't know who Fiyero was. She said he was... the Prince of the Vinkus. That... she fell in love with him."

Her father nodded, understanding.

"So your little ghost had a lover." Glinda shrugged, nodding slightly. "How did you do this if she's guarding it?"

"She... she ran away, and I rubbed it before I left the cemetery... last night."

"Last night? _Glinda, you were told not to go out to the cemetery last night!" _She winced as her mother lost her temper.

"But Mama-"

"You deliberately ignored me!"

"Coria! I think the child has learned her lesson. Let it go." Mr. Upland said softly, glancing at his oldest. His wife sighed.

"Fine. I'll let it slide this once."

After breakfast, Glinda asked, "Mama, can I go outside?" Her mother sighed and thought a moment.

"All right. But stay in sight of the house. And try not to get into trouble."

Quickly, the girl climbed to her feet and rushed outside, notebook in hand. Ignoring Tersan's pleas to wait up, she rushed to the fence, slid her notebook through the bars, and climbed over, before grabbing her notebook and rushing to find Elphaba.

"Elphaba! Elphaba!"

"What is it?"

She turned, to see the older girl sitting against the tree, her fingers tracing the letters of the carving above her head. Her cheeks were coated silver, and her voice was hoarse, as though she'd been crying all night. She hiccuped every once in a while, and sniffled softly. Glinda went to her, kneeling next to her.

"What's wrong?"

"What do you think is wrong?" Elphaba asked, hiccuping.

"I... I'm sorry..." She reached out towards the older girl, but she pulled away.

"Just _don't_." She turned from Glinda, resting her forehead against the tree, shoulders shaking with silent sobs.

"Did I do something wrong?" Elphaba shook her head once, her eyes closing against silent tears.

"Linny!"

"Shh!"

"Linny, what are you-"

_"Shut up, Tersan!" _She snapped at her brother, before turning back to Elphaba. Slowly, the little boy sat next to his sister.

"I'm sorry if I did something wrong, Elphaba."

The girl didn't respond, just curled up against the tree, her arms around herself. Glinda felt tears begin to prick her eyes, and she took a deep breath to keep from crying. Soon, Elphaba's sobs reached her ears, and she reached up, wiping tears from her cheeks.

"Is it Fiyero?"

Elphaba nodded.

"Is he hurt?"

A quick shake of her head.

"Then what's wrong?"

Elphaba choked out a sob, meeting Glinda's eyes.

_"He's dead."_


	18. Chapter 18

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

After a moment, Glinda glanced at her brother. He just stared at her, confused. She rolled her eyes, shaking her head slowly.

'I'll explain later.'

He nodded in understanding, and then she turned back to Elphaba.

"Um, Elphaba... you didn't know he was dead?"

"He wasn't dead."

"Um, E... Elphaba... it's two thousand ten. Everyone in your family is dead."

The older girl shook her head, and slowly climbed to her feet, wiping tears off her cheeks.

"Everything was perfect, _absolutely perfect_... _and then_..."

"And then what?" Glinda asked, climbing to her feet and following her friend.

_"And then it was ruined." _Elphaba sobbed, reaching up to wipe the tears from her cheeks.

"How was it-"

"Glinda! Tersan! Come inside for lunch!" She turned, at the sound of her mother's voice. Biting her lip, she turned back to Elphaba.

"I'll be back later." Elphaba sniffled, and nodded, not really hearing or caring. She took a deep breath, and turned, walking off, before gathering her skirt and fleeing around the corner of the tomb.

_"Linny, come on!"_

Turning back to where Elphaba had been, Glinda sighed and followed her brother back to the house.

That afternoon, as they sat down to lunch, Tersan brought Elphaba up again through a mouthful of ham sandwich.

"Linny can see her."

"She can?" Mr. Upland asked, glancing at his wife. Mrs. Upland sighed. She had just started at the bookstore, and had decided to take the week off for her family.

"It's not fair. She can see Elphaba and I can't."

"That's because she doesn't want you to see her." Glinda replied.

_"That's not true!"_

_"It might as well be!"_

"All right, that's enough. No more arguing." Mr. Upland interrupted, sipping his coffee.

Glinda swallowed the last bite of her sandwich, before asking to be excused. Once she had permission, she hurried upstairs to her room. After putting some of her things away, she lay on the floor, staring at the ceiling. Sighing, she sat up, and went to her nightstand. Rummaging around in the drawer, she finally found the nailpolish she had stuffed in the drawer not long after moving.

As she closed the drawer, the nail polish dropped from her hand and rolled under her bed. Sighing, she knelt down to get it. As her fingers wrapped around the small bottle, a creak sounded, and she stopped, before pressing down on the floorboard.

Again, it creaked.

The pink nail polish now disgarded, she crawled under the bed and pressed on the floorboard again.

It moved, as though loose.

Milla's words came rushing back to her from the day before.

_"Look sharp, you might find history right under your nose."_

Taking a deep breath, she gently worked the floorboard up, until she could move it to the side. There was a hollow space, like a hole. As her small fingers began to run along the sides of the hole, they graced something.

"Ouch!"

Quickly, she pulled her hand out of the hole, and crawled out from under the bed. Sitting on her knees, she examined her hand in the overhead light. Suddenly before her eyes, her index and middle fingers beaded red, and after wiping them on her jeans, she saw two small, thin cuts on the balls of her fingers.

Paper cuts.

But how had she gotten paper cuts?

After sucking on her fingers for a couple minutes, she crawled back under the bed and reached down into the hole, careful of her fingers. When she was finally able to get her fingers around something, she slowly pulled it out, holding her breath. Unable to see in the darkness under her bed, she crawled out from under the bed, and turned her nightstand light on, before taking a seat on the floor.

Finally, she turned her attention to what she'd pulled from the hole.

They appeared to be a bunch of papers tied together with a dark blue ribbon.

On closer inspection, she realized that they weren't papers.

They were love letters.

Silent, she studied the writing on the top envelope.

It was bold, firm cursive. Strong. Masculine.

It took a while for her to figure out whose name it was, but eventually, she was able to read it, and slowly, her eyes widened in shock.

Miss Elphaba Thropp

269 Colwen Grounds

Nest Hardings

Province of Munchkinland

86342

Milla's words came rushing back to her.

_"Look sharp, you might find history right under your nose."_

From the looks of it, she was holding history in the palm of her hand.

Real, live history.

Something of Elphaba's.

Suddenly, it struck her.

The letter must have been from the Fiyero that Elphaba was so upset about.

It had to be.

Taking a deep breath, she set the stack down and rubbed her palms on her jeans. Panic set in, and she climbed to her feet, rushing to her parents' bathroom, where the band-aids were kept. After cleaning the cuts and putting band-aids on them, she returned to her room, closing the door and returning to her spot where the letters were waiting. Just as she reached out to pull the first letter out, her bedroom door opened.

"Lina, honey, do you want some ice cream?"


	19. Chapter 19

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

**Thanks to Grumbello for reviewing 17 and lizziemagic for reviewing 10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18.**

"Sorry Daddy, what?"

"I'm going to head to the store to pick up some ice cream. What flavor do you want?" She bit her lip.

"Um... chocolate?"

"So it's unanimous. I'll be back in a few."

She nodded, and waited for him to close the door. Once he was gone, she turned back to the letters. Taking several deep breaths, she gently worked the top letter off the stack. The envelopes were in pristine condition, from being in a cool dry enviroment, in the space under her bed. Slowly, she lifted the envelope flap, and gently worked the letter out of the envelope. Once it was out, she set the envelope down, and slowly, gently opened the folded letter. She was surprised at the good condition of the letter, but chalked it up to being kept under the floor boards for a century.

The writing was bold, firm. She'd never seen old letters before, and didn't know what to make of the nice cursive. It was obviously a man's handwriting, and addressed to Elphaba; a love letter not from her betrothed, but from her lover. The top letter was the oldest, with the youngest on the bottom. At first, the writing was hard to make out, but after several minutes, she was able to read the bold script. It was short, only a paragraph, a friendly letter between two people that would go from being friends, to being lovers.

_Kiamo Ko, _

_The Vinkus_

_May 31st, 1908_

_Dear Miss Elphaba,_

_I hope you don't think me too forward, but I felt I must write you. Not long after meeting you at the Govenor's mansion, I found myself absolutely enchanted by you. The fact that you possess skin the color of fresh cut emeralds, does not detract from your beauty, but only enhances it. If only all women were so lucky to possess a skintone as beautiful, but then, you would blend with the rest, and it is so obvious that you were born to stand out from the rest. You are the most astounding person I've ever met, and I hope we can continue this friendship. _

_Sincerely Yours,_

_Fiyero Tiggular_

After she finished the letter, she folded it back up and put it back in the envelope, before going onto the next.

"What are you doing?"

She jumped, turning to see Tersan standing across from her.

"Ters-"

"What are those?" He asked, joining her and reaching out towards the stack.

"Don't!" She slapped his hand away.

"_Ow!_ That hurt!"

"Well don't touch them!"

"What are they?"

"Letters." He raised an eyebrow.

"Letters? That's all?"

She bit her lip.

"Love letters." She whispered.

"From who?"

"Elphaba."

"They're from Elphaba!" He cried. Quickly, she scrambled to cover her brother's mouth.

"Shh. And they're not _from_ Elphaba. They're _to_ Elphaba. From Fiyero."

Tersan furrowed an eyebrow.

"Who's Fiyero?"

She sighed._ "Elphaba's lover."_

"Oh. What's the letter say?"

"I don't know. I haven't read the others yet." Tersan sighed.

"Will you read them to me?"

So they sat together and Glinda read the letters aloud, as Tersan settled next to her, eventually resting his head on her lap. She got a quarter of the way through the letters, before Tersan got up, excited that Mr. Upland was back with the ice cream. Glinda sighed, and set the letters down, following. Once the ice cream was dished up, she and Tersan returned to her room, and ate it before returning to the letters.

The next letter Glinda picked up, was dated June sixteenth, ninteen oh nine, and was written from a hotel in the Emerald City. As the letters went on, they got to be more informal, eventually dropping the 'Miss' and just calling her 'Elphaba', a sign that they were thinking of each other as lovers instead of friends.

_The Emerald Hotel, _

_The Emerald City_

_June 16th, 1909_

_Dear Elphaba,_

_I'm sorry I was unable to write you sooner, I have been busy with meetings and dinners, however you have been on my mind every minute of every day. There isn't a day that goes by, that I don't think of you, don't remember your laugh or sweet smile, the way your nose wrinkles when you're pleased, or the feel of your hand in mine. I've gone to bed these last nights with your voice in my ear, and I wake in the morning with your scent in my nose. My family is going to be spending the summer in Neverdale, and since you told me once that you're family owns a house in Neverdale, perhaps we can meet together this summer. _

_I would very much appreciate meeting you this summer, spending time with you, when others are preoccupied, that perhaps we could discuss our future together. I can imagine myself caring for you, spending life with you, raising our children and protecting you. I love you, and I want to spend the rest of my life in your presence, as your husband, as the father of your children. I want children with your beautiful skintone, your enchanting eyes, your loving nature. _

_It doesn't matter that your father refuses to acknowledge me as a suitor, what matters is that we are happy together, and that we love each other. And I do, I love you, dearly. I hope that we can meet soon, and spend even a few precious hours together. I await your reply, my love. I love you dearly, with every beat of my heart. _

_Lovingly,_

_Fiyero_


	20. Chapter 20

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

**Question: If Elphaba is so thoroughly convinced it's 1910, why doesn't she ask Glinda to try to contact Fiyero and get him to come see her?**

**Answer: all Elphaba knows is that he's dead**

**Question: Why Fiyero wasn't considered a suitor, when marraige to a prince would give MUCH better political ties?**

**Answer: that'll be answered soon**

**Thanks to anglekitty for reviewing 19 and lizziemagic for reviewing 11 and 19.**

"He was in love with her."

"I know that, Ters." Glinda replied, putting the letter back in the envelope, rolling her eyes at her little brother's declaration. He sat up, watching his sister.

"Do you think Elphaba wrote back?"

"Why wouldn't she? She loved him. She probably wrote a lot back to him." After a moment, Tersan climbed to his feet.

"Maybe we could find her letters!"

Glinda wrinkled her nose, sighing.

"I don't think so."

"Why not?"

"Because Fiyero probably had them."

"Well maybe she kept a diary."

Glinda turned to look at him. "Maybe, but where would we look for it?" Her brother didn't respond, but watched as Glinda climbed under her bed and placed the letters back in the hole, before covering it with the floor board.

"What are you doing?"

"Putting them back."

"Why?" Glinda crawled out from under her bed and tossed her head, before blowing a wayward curl out of her eyes.

"Because, they're safe there."

"Oh." Then, Glinda stood, gathered the bowls and left the room, Tersan following quickly behind. "Linny, should we tell Daddy-" She turned on him, causing him to skid to a halt.

_"No! We're not telling anyone about the letters!"_

"Why not?"

"_Because Mama and Daddy will want to give them to the museum! We can't let them."_

"Why not?"

"Because we're going to help Elphaba."

Then, as if that explained everything, she turned and started down the stairs.

"How?"

She stopped, turning back to him. "How what?"

"How are we going to help Elphaba?"

"We're going to find Fiyero."

Tersan furrowed an eyebrow, confused.

"But... how are we going to find him if he's dead?" Glinda sighed.

"I don't know. But Elphaba thinks he's still alive. So we'll figure something out."

"But... why does Elphaba think he's still alive?" She stopped at the foot of the stairs, turning back to her brother, who stood on the third step.

"She thinks it's still nineteen ten. She doesn't know that it's not nineteen ten, that it's two thousand ten."

"Oh." They continued, going into the kitchen. "But... why does she think it's nineteen ten?"

_"I don't know, Tersan!" _She cried, dropping the bowls in the sink. Her snap caused her father to leave the living room.

"Everything all right, kids?" The two turned to him.

"Yes, Daddy." They replied in unison, turning to him. Her surveyed his children for a moment, before turning and heading back into the living room.

"All right, I believe you." But he glanced back, eyeing his children with a hint of suspicion. The kids smiled at him, and once he was gone, Glinda grabbed her brother's hand.

"Come on."

"Where are we going?" He asked, as she pulled him to the back door.

"The cemetery." Then, she turned back and called, "We're going outside!"

After a while, they heard, "Stay in sight of the house!" Quickly, they hurried out the back door towards the cemetery. Once they climbed over the fence, Glinda rushed to the tomb as Tersan lagged behind.

"Elphaba! Elphaba!"

_"What?" _

She turned, to see her friend in the same spot she'd been in earlier- sitting beneath the carving, tears racing silver down her cheeks. Her voice was hoarse, and she looked- and Glinda chided herself for thinking this- like death warmed over. Her eyes were puffy and instead of red rimmed appeared to be rimmed black, and her bottom lip was torn due to her teeth. The slashed skirt of her dress waved in the light breeze, brushing over her bare feet and sending chills down Glinda's spine.

Biting her lip, Glinda took a deep breath before saying, "I... I found your letters."

Elphaba's head snapped up and she sniffled. "What letters?"

"The letters Fiyero wrote to you." Elphaba's already ashen face turned nearly transparent, and she shakily got to her feet. She shook her head.

"You can't."

Glinda nodded. "I found them."

"No. No, I hid them. Under-"

"- a loose floor board in my room?" Elphaba shook her head harder this time.

"My room is on the second floor, on the west side, facing the-"

"Street?" Glinda asked. "That's my room. And the window's covered in ivy? That's my room." She took a step towards Elphaba, but the girl rushed past her, skidding to a stop near the tomb. She turned back.

"I hid those. If my father found them..." She choked out a sob. "I'd be disowned. I'd have no where to go. _He can't find those letters_!" She cried, reaching up to wipe her eyes.

"But, if you were disowned, wouldn't you be free to marry Fiyero?" Glinda asked, confused.

"You don't understand!" Elphaba cried, her sobs thickening her voice. "My father's already arranged a marriage with Avaric. If I don't go through with it... if I ran off with Yero... I'd disgrace my family's name... I can't do that..." She wrapped her arms around herself. "And now that Yero's dead... I don't have a choice..." Slowly, she crumpled to the ground, her shoulders shaking with sobs.

Letting out a soft sob, Glinda wiped her eyes, before kneeling next to her.


	21. Chapter 21

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

"Elphaba-"

The older girl didn't respond, instead, she just sobbed harder, her heartwrenching sobs tugging at Glinda's heart.

"Elphaba, what year is it?"

Slowly, the girl caught her breath. After a silence, she snapped,_ "It's ninteen hundred and ten. I've told you!" _

Glinda bit her lip, not sure how to ask this next question. "What... what day is it?" Elphaba shook her head, clamming up. "Elphaba _please_. I want to help you." After a moment, she lifted her head, meeting Glinda's eyes.

_"It's too late. I can't. Be. Helped." _

"But-"

"Just go away."

"But Elphaba-"

_"Please! Just GO. AWAY!"_

Tears sliding down her cheeks, Glinda got to her feet and went to Tersan.

"Come on Ters."

"Where are going, Linny?" She glanced back at Elphaba.

"She doesn't want us here right now." They climbed back over the fence, and headed back to the house.

"Why are you crying?"

"No reason." She whispered, following him in the house. Once inside, she grabbed a cookie from the jar and went back upstairs. After retrieving the letters from under the bed, she read through each one, her heart breaking at the promises he'd made to her, at the fact that they could never be together, at the heartbreak Elphaba was going through. So it was as she read through the last letter that she got a clue as to what Elphaba was so upset about.

_The Philosophy Club, _

_Eastern Munch_

_March 1st, 1910_

_Dear Elphaba,_

_I trust you will be ready and waiting in the carriage house behind Colwen Grounds at seven tonight? Remember my love, only a small satchel of your most important possessions. We'll buy what we can once we reach the City. I promise, and I never break a promise. With a little luck on our side, we'll flee Munchkinland by the witching hour, and be married by dawn. And then we'll be living the life of a fairy tale, as you call it. Life will be so much better- for both of us. No more titles, no more ridiculous dinners or unwanted balls, and the only people we'll have to worry about impressing will be each other. _

_I've left a letter with instructions wedged between the slats of the driver's seat of the carriage. It'll tell you what to do if caught. Before you leave, write out a letter, telling your parents you've decided to spend some time at your aunt's and that you arranged it ahead of time, to leave in the evening, so as to make it to the train on time. I'll be waiting in the carriage house, near the back, so as not to be spotted. If I'm not there, go to the cemetery, I'll be behind the tomb. But go only if I do not arrive within five minutes of your arrival. _

_By the time your parents find the letter, we'll be long gone, I promise. Nothing could keep me from coming to you. We'll be married and living our lives on our terms in a few short hours, my love. Once we flee Munchkinland, we'll create our own destiny, without our parents taking hold. We'll spend the rest of our days doing what we wish, raising a family, living the way we've alway hope too. I'll try my hardest to make you happy. _

_Remember my love, the carriage house at seven. I'll be waiting. _

_I'll count the hours until we meet again._

_Lovingly,_

_Fiyero_

Her head snapped up and she rushed from her room, skidding down the hallway towards her brother's room.

"Tersan! Tersan!"

The little boy looked up from his coloring. "What is it, Linny?" He asked, dropping his crayons and sitting up on the bed. He watched his older sister close his bedroom door, and moved over when she sat next to him.

"They were going to run away."

"Who, Linny? Who was going to run away?" He asked confused.

_"Fiyero and Ephaba."_

"How do you know?" She rolled her eyes and held up the letter, pointing to the passages as she read them out loud.

"'_I trust you will be ready and waiting in the carriage house behind Colwen Grounds at seven tonight? Remember my love, only a small satchel of your most important possessions. We'll buy what we can once we reach the City. I promise, and I never break a promise. With a little luck on our side, we'll flee Munchkinland by the witching hour, and be married by dawn. And then we'll be living the life of a fairy tale, as you call it. Life will be so much better- for both of us. No more titles, no more ridiculous dinners or unwanted balls, and the only people we'll have to worry about impressing will be each other. _

_I've left a letter with instructions wedged between the slats of the driver's seat of the carriage. It'll tell you what to do if caught. Before you leave, write out a letter, telling your parents you've decided to spend some time at your aunt's and that you arranged it ahead of time, to leave in the evening, so as to make it to the train on time. I'll be waiting in the carriage house, near the back, so as not to be spotted. If I'm not there, go to the cemetery, I'll be behind the tomb. But go only if I do not arrive within five minutes of your arrival. _

_By the time your parents find the letter, we'll be long gone, I promise. Nothing could keep me from coming to you. We'll be married and living our lives on our terms in a few short hours, my love. Once we flee Munchkinland, we'll create our own destiny, without our parents taking hold. We'll spend the rest of our days doing what we wish, raising a family, living the way we've alway hope too. I'll try my hardest to make you happy. _

_Remember my love, the carriage house at seven. I'll be waiting. _

_I'll count the hours until we meet again._

_Lovingly,_

_Fiyero'"_

"But-"

"They were going to run away and get married!" She cried, excitement in her eyes. "It's so romantic!" Tersan wrinkled his nose.

"Why didn't they?"

"What?"

"Why didn't they get married?"

She lowered the letter to her lap.

"Elphaba said they got caught." She whispered.

"Oh." Then, sighing, she got up and left the room, Tersan following behind. When they returned to her room, to find the letters gone.

_"Glinda!"_


	22. Chapter 22

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

The girl paled and turned to her brother, who bit his lower lip anxiously.

_"Glinda Emalia Upland! Get down here! NOW!"_

Swallowing, she left the room, making her way down the hallway and the stairs. Then, slowly, she tiptoed towards the dining room, poking her head in, to see her father and mother sitting at the table, Elphaba's letters on the smooth wood between them. Silent, her father beckoned her into the room. She did as told, and once she was close, her father lifted up one of the letters, waving it gently in front of her face.

"Glinda, where did you get these?"

The girl bit her lip, not wanting to say, but the look her father was giving her forced her to tell.

"I... I found them under my bed..." She trailed off, embarrassed.

"And when _exactly_ were you going to tell us about them?" Mrs. Upland asked.

"I... I wasn't." Glinda whispered, cheeks turning pink. Mrs. Upland sighed.

"Glinda, these aren't yours-"

"I know. They're Elphaba's."

"They belong at the museum, with the rest of the family's possessions." Mr. Upland said, setting them back on the table.

"But Daddy-"

"No buts Lina. I'll call the museum and tell them we have something that belongs to them, and then we're going to go down there and you're going to hand them over." He said, going the phone.

_"But Daddy, no! They can't!"_

"And why can't they, Glinda?" Mrs. Upland asked, looking through them.

_"Because I have to help Elphaba!" _Mrs. Upland rolled her eyes.

"Elphaba. _Elphaba. Again with this Elphaba! _Glinda, _she doesn't exist_." She said, standing and leaning against the table towards her daughter. Glinda's eyes welled with tears.

_"Yes she does, Mommy! She's a ghost in the cemetery! And she and Fiyero were planning on runaway together but they got caught and something bad happened!" _She cried, throwing the letter on the table. Then, she sat down in one of the chairs and sobbed. Slowly, Mrs. Upland picked up the letter and read it, her eyes running quickly over the contents of Fiyero's letter.

"Merku, wait." Her soft whisper reached him, and he stopped dialing before setting the phone down and going to her. As he read it over her shoulder, he glanced at his daughter, who sat sobbing at the dining room table.

_Dear Elphaba,_

_I trust you will be ready and waiting in the carriage house behind Colwen Grounds at seven tonight? Remember my love, only a small satchel of your most important possessions. We'll buy what we can once we reach the City. I promise, and I never break a promise. With a little luck on our side, we'll flee Munchkinland by the witching hour, and be married by dawn. And then we'll be living the life of a fairy tale, as you call it. Life will be so much better- for both of us. No more titles, no more ridiculous dinners or unwanted balls, and the only people we'll have to worry about impressing will be each other. _

_I've left a letter with instructions wedged between the slats of the driver's seat of the carriage. It'll tell you what to do if caught. Before you leave, write out a letter, telling your parents you've decided to spend some time at your aunt's and that you arranged it ahead of time, to leave in the evening, so as to make it to the train on time. I'll be waiting in the carriage house, near the back, so as not to be spotted. If I'm not there, go to the cemetery, I'll be behind the tomb. But go only if I do not arrive within five minutes of your arrival. _

_By the time your parents find the letter, we'll be long gone, I promise. Nothing could keep me from coming to you. We'll be married and living our lives on our terms in a few short hours, my love. Once we flee Munchkinland, we'll create our own destiny, without our parents taking hold. We'll spend the rest of our days doing what we wish, raising a family, living the way we've alway hope too. I'll try my hardest to make you happy. _

_Remember my love, the carriage house at seven. I'll be waiting. _

_I'll count the hours until we meet again._

_Lovingly,_

_Fiyero_

When they finished reading it, Mrs. Upland looked at her daughter. "This was with these?" She asked, laying a hand on the stack. Glinda nodded.

"Mommy?" Everyone turned, to see Tersan, holding Glinda's notebook. Silent, he went to the table and laid it open in front of his parents, on the page containing the rubbing. Mrs. Upland's eyes went from the rubbing to the letter and back.

Elphaba Thropp + Fiyero Tiggular

"This is his name? Fiyero Tiggular?" Tersan nodded, as Glinda wiped her eyes.

"E... Elphaba said... he... he was a... a prince..." After a moment, Mr. Upland disappeared into the living room. When he returned, he had his laptop, and taking a seat at the table, he logged onto the internet and pulled up Bing. Quickly, he typed in Fiyero Tiggular, and up came one hundred fifty-four results. After scrolling through a couple pages, he clicked on one, bringing up a webpage on the Tiggulars.

"Lina, honey come here." Slowly, she went to her father, and he pulled her onto his lap. "Is this him?" He asked, showing her the portrait of a young man. Glinda studied it for a moment, before looking at her father.

"I don't know. Elphaba won't say what he looks like."

"Well let's take a look, shall we?" He asked, clicking on the different pages. After several different pages, one came up showing a photograph of a young woman in a beautiful white blouse.

The Govenor's Daughter

_In 1908, at a state dinner held by the Govenor of Munchkinland, Prince Fiyero met a young woman of exquisite beauty. He was seen talking to her several times over the night, before realizing that he was talking to the Govenor's oldest daughter, Elphaba Salia..._


	23. Chapter 23

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

**A/N: I'm back! Spent the weekend down in Yerington, but I'm back!**

**Question: But why would she (Elphaba) care about being disgraceful?**

**Answer: I'm not saying, you'll have to read for yourself**

**Question: Doesn't Frex consider her (Elphaba's) green skin a disgrace anyway?**

**Answer: Like I said, I'm not saying, you'll have to read for yourself**

**Thanks to lizziemagic for reviewing 20, 21 and 22 and to KarmelKisses2 and Grumbello for reviewing 22.**

"Is that her, Lina?" Mr. Upland asked, glancing at his daughter before looking back at the photograph. After studying the photograph silently, Glinda nodded.

"She's pretty." Mrs. Upland whispered, looking over her husband's shoulder. Elphaba stared back at them, a small smile on her pretty features. Her long dark hair was piled in curls on top of her head, and she had a smart little jacket on. Seated on a chair in front of a desk, her work sat abandoned, as she stared at the camera- a posed photograph.

"It says here that she met Fiyero at a dinner her father had held in ninteen oh eight. Does that sound right, Lina?" Glinda looked back at her father.

"Yes." She whispered. She glanced at her father, before turning back to the page. They scrolled down, before he clicked on one and pulled it up. A photograph of several people enlarged, and Glinda recognized Elphaba, sitting on the sofa in the middle of the group. She appeared to be talking to a young man. Both were talking excitedly, and seemed to be enjoying each other's company. Now, she recognized the young man as Elphaba's beloved Fiyero. After a moment, Glinda turned to her father and asked, "Daddy, can we print this out?"

He nodded, quickly hitting the print button. After printing out a couple more, Glinda grabbed the letters and hurried outside, Tersan hot on her heels. As their parents watched from the back verandah, Mrs. Upland asked, "Are we doing the right thing, Merku?" He wrapped her in his arms and kissed her hair.

"Let her have this, Coria."

"Elphaba! Elphaba!"

Tersan landed in a small pile of leaves when he dropped to the ground, and after climbing to his feet, looked around. "Linny, should we be doing this? I don't think she wants to see you."

"Not now, Ters." She snapped, hurrying to the tomb.

"But Linny-" Glinda ignored him.

"Elphaba?" She looked around quickly, before circling the tomb twice and coming up empty. "Elphaba?"

_"What do you want?"_

Slowly, she turned at the voice, to see Elphaba leaning against the tomb wall, her curls around her shoulders and her eyes burning with... something.

"Hi Elphaba." She smiled at the older girl, who set her jaw and took several deep breaths through her nose. The fence proved a hinderance, and finally giving up trying to climb over it, held the papers out to Elphaba. The young woman made no move to take them; instead, she just stared at Glinda and the papers, before her eyes slowly moved to the stack of letters in Glinda's other hand. After a moment, Glinda looked down at the letters. "I... I found your letters." She said, holding them out to Elphaba. The girl's expression darkened. "They were under a floorboard in my room. Daddy found them when I left them on the floor, and we looked him up. You're Fiyero was a prince. A Vinkun prince."

_"I know." _Elphaba growled.

"Linny," Glinda turned, to see Tersan tugging gently on her shirt. "Linny, let's go. I've got a bad feeling about this." She rolled her eyes and gently pushed her brother away.

"Go sit down, Tersan. I'm talking to Elphaba." He bit his lip.

"But Linny-"

_"Not now, Tersan!"_

Then, she turned back to Elphaba, who watched the younger girl. Suddenly, Glinda felt fear crawl up her back, as she stared at Elphaba. The older girl didn't move, didn't speak; she kept her focus on Glinda, as fire danced in her eyes. After a moment, she said,

"I_ know _he was a prince, Glinda."

"Then why didn't you marry him?"

"Because my father had already arranged a marriage with Avaric. A promise is a promise. I can't break an engagment."

"But what about Fiyero? You promised him! And you broke your promise to him!"

The older girl bit her lip, glancing at Tersan, who had resorted to catching leaves to preoccupy himself while his sister talked to her ghost.

"It doesn't matter."

"Why not? Isn't a prince a better match than a Meagrave?"

Elphaba took a deep breath.

_"Not to my father."_

"But why not?"

"You don't get it. You do what my father says." Glinda furrowed her brow, confused. Elphaba wasn't making sense.

"Ahh... I... I don't... I don't understand-"

_"You wouldn't."_ Elphaba replied, bitterness lacing her voice. She pushed herself away from the tomb wall, and wandered to the fence, running her fingers over- or rather through- the cold iron. She refused to meet Glinda's eyes, and instead, walked back and forth along her length of the fence, her fingers moving through the iron spikes. Her cold demeanor hid an anger that was quickly boiling over into a hate; it was slowly consuming her, as she kept thinking back on the news that had broken her heart days earlier. Finally, in a calm, smooth voice; refusing to meet Glinda's eyes, Elphaba said,

"You follow his rules, you live."


	24. Chapter 24

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

**Thanks to Grumbello for reviewing 23.**

"Wh... what do you mean 'you follow his rules, and you live'?" Glinda asked, lowering the letters and looking at Elphaba.

The girl stopped her pacing and locked eyes with Glinda. The younger girl shivered, not liking the gleam in her friend's eyes. After a moment, Elphaba said,

"If you don't do what he tells you, you'll face dire consequences."

Glinda opened her mouth to speak, but found herself drawing a blank. Finally, she whispered,

"What do you mean?"

Quickly, Elphaba turned and walked to the opposite corner of the fence, leaning against it. Her long raven hair tumbled down her chest, hiding her face from view. Eyes closed, she took several deep breaths, as tears pricked at the corners of her eyes. Her breathing came in gasps, and she shook with silent anger. After a moment, she said,

"You don't know what it's like, living with him."

"Who?" Glinda asked, moving towards Elphaba. The girl didn't respond. She licked her lips, taking another deep breath. "Elphaba? Who? Who's rules?" She stopped in front of her friend, waiting. After a moment, Elphaba raised her head, and Glinda saw the silver trails down her cheeks. She also saw the fire in her eyes.

"Is it the Meagrave?" Elphaba shook her head. She knew she shouldn't ask, but did anyway. "Fiyero?" Again, a shake of the head. "You're... you're brother?"

"No." Elphaba whispered, moving away and wandering towards the tomb, reaching out to run her fingers over the cold stone. She moved along, running her fingers through the stone, stopping at the door. She sighed, and gasped for breath.

"Then who is it?"

"My father."

"Who?" Glinda asked, not hearing Elphaba's soft whisper. She hurried towards the front of the fence, stopping to meet Elphaba's eyes. After a while, Elphaba turned, meeting Glinda's gaze.

_"My father_." She said, voice filled with hate.

Glinda's mouth dropped, and the letters dropped from her hand to the soft ground inside the fence. The printed pictures followed a short time later, and slowly, Glinda backed up, until she stumbled and ended up sitting on the ground. Tersan looked up and rushed to her, but she shook him off. Meanwhile, Elphaba went to the fence, having noticed the letters and pictures Glinda dropped.

Slowly, she knelt at the fence, and reached out to pick up the stack of letters, however, her hand went through them. After trying several more times, she turned her attention to the pictures, examining them closely. Her heart thudded in her chest as she recognized her and Fiyero, on the sofa in the parlor of Colwen Grounds, on the eve of her father's dinner, talking. The conversation cam rushing back to her as she stared at the photograph. Though grainy, it brought the memory- and the coversation held that night- rushing back.

_"Do you mind if I join you, Miss?" _

_She looked up, blushing as she did so. _

_"Please, sir, sit." _

_He joined her, turning to face her as conversation swirled around them. _

_"I hope you don't find me impertinent, but, I've never found these types of gatherings to hold much substance- even if it is being hosted by the Govenor." _

_She lowered her eyes. _

_"Good, then I'm not the only one to feel that way." _

_"You don't like these gatherings either?" She met his eyes, shaking her head. _

_"No. Yet Father is always organizing a dinner or a ball, in order to show how wonderful a job he's doing as Govenor. And I'm forced to take part."_

_He paled. _

_"You are the Govenor's daughter?" She nodded. _

_"Yes. And you are the Prince of the Vinkus." _

_"I'm sorry. I... If I'd known I was talking to the Govenor's daughter..."_

_She shrugged softly. _

_"It's all right. It's nice to have someone else who agrees with me. I'm so tired of these dinners and balls, it's nothing but show. I'm sick of being placed on display in order to improve my father's ratings. He may use Nessa, but not me."_

_"Then it looks like we're in the same boat, Miss..."_

_"Elphaba."_

_"Miss Elphaba." He whispered, nodding to her. She smiled and lowered her eyes, before looking back at him. _

_"I thought the Prince of the Vinkus enjoyed things like this." He shook his head, wrinkling his nose. _

_"They're a bore. I'd much prefer to be in the library, reading, or horseback riding than sitting down to some boring dinner at a table populated by nothing but pompus old windbags." _

_She giggled softly behind her hand. _

_"Really Master-"_

_"Fiyero." _

_"Master Fiyero," She whispered, "I'd have never thought you'd feel that way about a dinner. After all, it's my father's generosity that has gathered us all here tonight at Colwen Grounds. To celebrate him winning another term."_

_"And while that may be so, Miss Elphaba, I find this whole farce an absolute and complete bore. Fireworks on Kumbrica's name day would be more entertaining."_

_"And so would those drinking and wandering the streets on the very same name day, Master Fiyero." She replied, giggling. He watched her for a moment, a soft smile on his lips. Then, without warning, he leaned over and captured her lips in a gentle kiss. She pulled away and stared at him, before smiling and kissing him gently back._

The memory faded, and she choked out a gasp, tears running down her cheeks, as she stumbled back into the dirt, the memory causing the sobs to wrench from her chest as her heart broke all over again.


	25. Chapter 25

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

**A/N: Sorry this chapter is so short and sorry that it's so late...**

**Thanks to Grumbello and lizziemagic for reviewing 24.**

It took a while before air came rushing back into Glinda's lungs, but when it did, she choked out, "No. A... father wouldn't do that. Daddy wouldn't do that-"

_"My father isn't like your father!" _Elphaba cried, looking up at her through her tears. Her voice was thick with tears and her cheeks glistened silver, as she slowly climbed to her feet and made her way towards Glinda, going through the fence. _"He doesn't praise you when you do something good, he doesn't let you do anything without his permission, you follow his rules, you do what he tells you, and you get freedom. You don't do _anything_ without his permission."_

Glinda backed up slowly, suddenly afraid of her friend.

When Elphaba's knees buckled and she collapsed in front of Glinda, wrapping her arms around herself, Glinda moved closer, reaching out to touch her. Not caring that her friend was a ghost, she sat next to Elphaba and comforted her any way she could. Eventually, Elphaba curled up on the ground, Glinda forgotten, as she lost herself in the heartbreak of the situation. The letters and photographs had brought back memories she'd buried, brought back promises that had been broken, brought back a night of freedom that ended in tragedy.

With Fiyero dead, she was trapped, her life over, her heart broken.

"E... Elphaba?"

The older girl ignored her, climbing to her feet. She looked back at Glinda and Tersan, took a deep breath, and rushed past the tomb, going further into the cemetery. Glancing back at her brother, Glinda rushed after her, keeping an eye on Elphaba and watching her feet to make sure she wasn't running into the stones. When she finally reached Elphaba, she was out of breath and her feet hurt, but she silently moved towards her, so as not to startle her.

But as though she sensed her, Elphaba turned, and after a moment, screamed,

"GET OUT!"

"But-"

_"GET OUT!"_

The girl did as told.

When Tersan looked up, he saw his sister rushing towards him. Forgetting the letters and pictures, she rushed to her brother, grabbed his hand, and dragged him to the fence.

"Linny? What's wrong? Where's Elphaba? What happened?"

"Not now, Ters!" She cried, shoving him towards the gate. Once both had climbed over, Glinda grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the house.

"But Linny! What happened to Elphaba?"

"Not now, Ters!"

"But-" He didn't get to finish because Glinda was pulling him through the back door and into the living room.

"Glinda? Honey, what's wrong?"

"She won't tell me!" Tersan said, pulling away from his sister and going to sit on the sofa next to his father.

"Won't tell you what, Ters?" Mr. Upland asked. Glinda looked at both her parents before saying,

"Elphaba said that her father was mean to her, and that he didn't let... her do things... and she got upset and... and ran away. And when I went after her, she told me to get out."

Mr. Upland nodded, understanding.

"Well, I think, it'd be a good idea if you left Elphaba alone for the rest of the night. Let her sort everything out, because she obviously has some things she needs to deal with, and she can't deal with them with you two around. Okay?" After a moment, Glinda nodded. "Good. And it's time for you both to go to bed. Come on." He stood, helped Tersan up and followed them up the stairs before tucking them in.

Ten minutes later, however, Glinda had settled on the window seat to watch the stars through the ivy. Knees to her chest, she kept thinking about Elphaba, and how upset she'd been that afternoon. Her mind ran through everything that could have happened to Elphaba and Fiyero.

They could have run away together.

No, that wasn't it.

If they had, Elphaba wouldn't be here.

They could have commited suicide together.

No, because Elphaba had said that_ he _was dead- but then again, that _would_ explain her surviving.

Maybe she couldn't go through with it.

But what was the whole thing about her father?

Maybe they got caught.

That could be it...

She drifted off to sleep, her forehead pressed against the cracked glass, as Elphaba rushed through the cemetery, blinded by tears.

When she finally collapsed among the stones, her heart had broken completely, and she didn't know the pain of heartbreak from the pain of death anymore.

Turning her face to the sky, she caught the stars watching overhead.

_"FIYERO!"_


	26. Chapter 26

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

**A/N: I actually found myself crying when I worked on this chapter.**

_"Where are you going, Fabala?" _

_"Um... uh... n... No where, Nessa. I... I just want something to drink. I'm thirsty. My throat's dry." _

_"Oh, all right. Goodnight, Fabala."_

_"Goodnight, Nessa. Sweet dreams." _

_Her footsteps were light on the stair, as she backtracked and slipped down the servants' stairs before going out the backdoor with a satchel of clothes in her hand. She glanced behind her every so often to make sure she wasn't being followed, and, once satified that no one had seen or followed her, she hurried through the expansive grounds, making her way to the carriage house where he was waiting, like he'd promised. _

_It was a few minutes past seven, but she hoped he would understand. _

_She couldn't get away before, otherwise the servants would have seen her and then their plan would have been ruined. _

_Finally pushing the carriage door open enough so she could get through, she slipped into it and stopped, allowing her eyes to adjust to the darkness. It seemed darker here in the carriage house than it did in the main house, and possessed a very strong earthy smell, unlike her room on the second floor, with it's perfumes and rosewater. Once she had adjusted to the darkness, she moved into the carriage house, searching for him. _

_"Yero? Are you here? Yero-"_

_Silence. _

_She set her satchel down and slowly moved about, looking in the stalls and the carriages and finding nothing. _

_Until she heard someone speaking. _

_But listening again, she realized it wasn't speaking but coughing. _

_And that's when she turned..._

_"FIYERO!"_

Her eyes snapped open, and she sat up, at first disoriented before everything came rushing back. Once she was fully awake, she got up and went to the bed, laying on it, going over the dream again and again. Only it didn't seem like a dream.

It seemed like...

A memory.

But not her memory.

Someone else's.

And suddenly it hit her.

Elphaba.

It was_ Elphaba's memory_.

But of what?

As she sat up, it came to her.

It was of the night they were supposed to run away.

Suddenly unable to sleep or sit still, Glinda climbed off the bed, pulled on her shoes, and snuck out of the house, making her way down to the cemetery. As she slipped over the fence, she kept an ear open for the slightest sound. Once she was on the ground, she moved through the cemetery towards the tomb, searching for Elphaba.

"Elphaba. Elphaba!"

After several minutes, she came upon her friend, sitting on her knees with her back to her.

"Elphaba!" She rushed to her, stopping when Elphaba turned to her.

She scared her.

Her hair was wild, her eyes glinted with something that Glinda couldn't identify and didn't _want_ to identify- insanity, fever, or perhaps a mix of the two. She stared at Glinda with a frightened look, a look of horror, as though possessed, her breathing heavy. Then, slowly, she stood.

"D... did you... did you go to the carriage house that night?" Glinda choked out. After a moment, she took a step towards Glinda. "The night you were going to meet Fiyero?"

After a moment, Elphaba spoke, her voice cold, bitter.

"We agreed... to meet in the carriage house... at seven..." She said, swallowing every so often. "I... I couldn't get away... until seven-ten... and... when I got down... to the carriage house... I couldn't... find him... I... I thought he'd left me... I... I searched... for forty-five minutes I searched... and... and finally I found him..."

_"Who's there?"_

_The coughing continued, and she hurried, until she got to a back corner. He was doubled over, and another man was standing over him. _

"He was... doubled over in pain... and there was someone else... standing over him..."

_The man moved closer, coming into the light of the lantern, and then she saw him._

"He stepped... into the lantern light... and... I saw his face..."

_He was older, with dark hair and blue eyes. As soon as she saw the eyes, she knew who it was._

"...My _father_... my _father_..."

_Frex._

"Then... he... he raised a pistol... and _shot him_..."

_The gun her father held rose level with the younger man's chest, and after a moment, the tigger was pulled. The shot shattered the night, the quiet in the carriage house, and broke her heart as he crumpled to the ground. _

_"No! Yero!"_

"I... I rushed towards them... collapsed on my knees and held him in my arms... there was_ so much blood_..."

_"YERO!"_

_Rushing from her hiding place, she hurried to his side, falling to the ground and gathering him to her chest as blood quickly stained his shirt. He looked up at her, connecting eyes with her. _

"He didn't say anything... just... just looked at me... and I... I took his hand... and... and told him to hold on... that he was going to be okay... that he was going to live..."

At this point, Glinda, who had been backing up, stumbled over her feet and landed on her back, before crab-walking back and finally sitting back as Elphaba moved closer, tears streaming down her cheeks.

_"You'll be okay, Yero. You'll be okay. All right? You're going to live. You have too. You have too. For me. _For us_..." _

_Then, she looked up at Frex. Tears streaming down her cheeks as she cradled her love in her arms, she lost her temper. _

_"How could you? How could you! I love him! I love him!" __Then, she turned back to her love, pressing her forehead to his. "You'll be okay. You'll be okay. I promise. I promise..." _

"He... he reached up... and laid... his fingers on my cheek... and told me... that he loved me... and that he was sorry..."

_After several minutes, he reached up, cupping her cheek in his hand. His breathing was slowing, making each breath harder and more painful. He never took his eyes away from hers, and after a few moments, whispered, _

_"I love you. I'm so sorry, Elphaba."_

_"No, it's not your fault. It's not... you'll be okay... you'll be okay..."_

_"I... love... you..."_

_And with his last breath, his eyes closed, and his hand dropped to the ground. _

_"No... Yero... no! YERO!" _

_She cradled him in her arms, rocking back and forth as her hands became stained with his blood._

_"YERO!"_

"He died... _he died_..."

Glinda found herself crying, unable to speak, as Elphaba told her about Fiyero's death. When she was able to speak, she said,

"I'm sorry, Elphaba." Then, licking her lips, she asked, "H... how did you die?"

It was then that Elphaba looked up, and after a moment, she flew at Glinda, beating and scratching and shoving and screaming. Eventually, Glinda managed to pull away, and rushed towards the gate, only to have Elphaba chase after her. As Elphaba lost her temper and continued her abuse, Glinda, not caring whether her parents heard or not, screamed.


	27. Chapter 27

**Rifiuto: Non Miriena**

**Question: how did elphaba die?**

**Answer: you'll find out**

**Question: Why is Elphaba so violent towards Glinda though?**

**Answer: she's taking her anger out on Glinda**

**Thanks to lizziemagic for reviewing 25 and 26 and to Drama Queen Sunniebunn for reviewing 26.**

Mr. Upland jerked awake, chills racing up his spine. Once his eyes had adjusted to the darkness, he climbed out of bed and pulled on his robe.

"Merku? Wh... it's midnight. What are you doing up?" He turned, to see his wife sit up.

"I'm just going to go check on Lina, Cor. I'll be right back." And after placing a kiss on her forehead, he left, hurrying down the hall towards his daughter's room. "Lina? Lina, honey?" After pushing the door open and turning the light on, he saw that the bed was empty. Instantly, fear rushed through him. "Glinda? Glinda!"

"Merku, what's wrong? What is it?" Coria asked, stepping into the hallway, as she tightened her robe around her.

"Lina's missing. She's not in her room-" He said, going towards Tersan's room.

"Maybe she's in-"

"No, Tersan isn't in his room either."

"Maybe they're downstairs-"

"No. We'd have heard them-" He said, pacing the hallway. Coria sighed, and leaned back against the wall, trying to stifle her yawn.

"What are you so worried about, Merku-"

"The only place that they could be would be the-"

She looked at him, waiting.

"The cemetery!"

Without explaining, he rushed down the hall towards the staircase, leaving Coria alone in the hall.

"Merku! Merku!" Rather than wait around, she quickly followed, catching up when they got outside. "Merku, what are you going on about-"

"Shh."

"Don't shush me! I-"

"Shh!" He turned to her, holding a finger up to silence her. "Did you hear that?" She shook her head.

"No I didn't hear-"

"Shh." They fell into silence, and faintly, the sound of screams could be heard.

"Is that-"

"I don't know." Merku replied, turning. "They're coming from the cemetery!" Then, he took off running toward the iron gates.

"Merku!" She followed, and as they got closer to the iron gates, they realized the screams _were_ coming from the cemetery. From their daughter.

"Lina!"

The girl looked up, turning towards the gates. "Daddy!" Instantly, Tersan took off running towards the gate, as their parents rushed towards them. They struggled with the gate, but once it was open, Tersan rushed towards his mother, throwing himself into her arms. Not checking to see that his son was all right, Merku rushed into the cemetery and towards his daughter.

"_I lost the love of my life! My father took him from me! You have no idea what that feels like!" _Terrified, Glinda kicked out towards Elphaba, but the older girl ignored her, ripping into her, not caring whether she hurt the girl or not. In a last attempt to get away, Glinda climbed to her feet and rushed to her father, throwing herself into his arms. Neither said anything; Mr. Upland scooped his daughter up and rushed from the cemetery, slamming the gates closed behind him before rushing back to the porch. As soon as they were on the sturdy wood, he set her down, and checked her for bruises.

"Are you okay, sweetheart?" The girl shook her head.

"She... she started... yelling... a... and screaming..."

"Let's go inside, get you both cleaned up." Coria said, leading her children into the house. Once they were inside and upstairs, Coria unbuttoned her childrens' pajama tops to examine them. "Oh Oz!"

Cuts, gashes, and scratches covered Glinda's chest, back and shoulders. The little girl was shaking and near tears. Quickly, Coria rushed to the bathroom, grabbed a washcloth and returned, running the went material over her daughter's skin. The girl winced in pain and bit her lip to keep from crying out.

"Who did this too you, Lina?" Merku asked, as he checked Tersan over for cuts and bruises.

"Elphaba." All eyes turned to Tersan. "She was attacking her."

"We told you to leave her alone, Glinda." Coria said. After the children were cleaned up and put to bed, Coria and Merku returned to their room, only to be woken hours later by Glinda and Tersan. "What is it?" The girl bit her lip before climbing onto the bed.

"I... I know how... how Fiyero died." She said, as Coria reached up to brush a strand of hair away from her face.

"Fiyero?"

"Elphaba's lover." Glinda said.

"How did he die, Lina?" Merku asked.

"M... Mr. Thropp shot him." Her parents shared a curious glance.

"Elphaba's father?" The girl nodded.

"Honey, what do you mean Mr. Thropp shot him?" Coria asked, as her daughter cuddled between them.

"He... he caught him in the carriage house waiting for Elphaba and shot him. Elphaba found him." She said, looking up at her parents.

"But, how do you-"

"Elphaba told me." Coria looked at her husband, and then wrapped her arm around Tersan as he joined them on the bed. After several moments of silence, Merku looked at first his daughter and then his son. Both watched him silently, waiting for him to speak. Licking his lips, he asked,

"Lina, how did Elphaba die?"

Glinda met his eyes before turning to look at her mother.

"She... she won't say."


End file.
